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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. field — for sport
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. root — the cause
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. field — farmland
  8. land — to come down
  9. staff — employees
  10. land — ground
  11. staff — employees
  12. wax — to grow
  13. root — of a plant
  14. cold — an illness
  15. cold — not warm
  16. field — a subject
  17. staff — a stick
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. land — a country
  21. sharp — clever
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. root — of a word
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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