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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. drill — army training
  4. mine — for digging
  5. wax — to grow
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. rush — hurry
  8. drill — the tool
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. ball — a dance
  12. drill — a practice
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. scale — size or range
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. scale — in music
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. ball — a great time
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. leaves — of a tree

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