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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. bass — the fish
  5. wax — to grow
  6. present — the time now
  7. saw — the tool
  8. mate — to breed
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. pop — soda
  11. present — there
  12. pop — music
  13. sharp — clever
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. pop — to visit
  16. bass — low music
  17. saw — the tool
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. mate — a friend
  22. present — a gift
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. sharp — exactly

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