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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. wind — moving air
  5. hand — help
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. bound — obliged
  8. ground — the earth
  9. scale — size or range
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. ground — crushed
  13. ground — a position
  14. rush — hurry
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. wind — moving air
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. hand — in cards
  20. scale — in music
  21. bound — tied together
  22. bound — certain
  23. wax — to grow
  24. rush — to hurry

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