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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 120 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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. kid — child
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. plane — a tool
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. shower — to wash
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. kid — to tease
  16. wax — to grow
  17. shower — rain
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. scale — size or range
  24. arm — part of the body

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