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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. hand — in cards
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. plane — a tool
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. hand — help
  9. mate — a friend
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. stock — shares
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. mate — a partner
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. stock — goods
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. capital — money
  20. mate — to breed
  21. capital — a city
  22. wax — to grow
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. wax — for sculpting

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com