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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 kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. rash — hasty
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. kid — child
  9. kid — to tease
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. scale — size or range
  12. bulb — for light
  13. sharp — clever
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. scale — in music
  16. land — ground
  17. wax — to grow
  18. land — to come down
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. bulb — for light
  22. rash — a series
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. land — a country

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