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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 116 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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. fine — all right
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. fine — high quality
  9. kid — to tease
  10. wax — to grow
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. mine — for digging
  21. kid — child
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. scale — size or range
  24. kick — in football

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