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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. land — ground
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. capital — money
  5. chip — to eat
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. pit — a hole
  8. race — the arms race
  9. capital — a city
  10. race — humankind
  11. wax — to grow
  12. season — in sport
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. land — to come down
  18. race — a contest
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. chip — for betting
  21. pit — in a race
  22. land — a country
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. season — of the year

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