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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. fine — high quality
  3. land — to come down
  4. saw — the tool
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. fine — all right
  7. wax — to grow
  8. branch — a division
  9. present — a gift
  10. land — ground
  11. mate — a friend
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. saw — the tool
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. present — there
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. mate — a partner
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. mate — to breed
  22. present — the time now
  23. land — a country
  24. branch — 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