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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. ball — a great time
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. fall — to drop
  6. spring — a coil
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. spring — of water
  10. mug — a face
  11. bore — to tire
  12. bore — to drill
  13. mug — a cup
  14. chip — to eat
  15. fall — to drop
  16. mug — to rob
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. wax — to grow
  19. spring — the season
  20. ball — a dance
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. fall — the season
  24. chip — for betting

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