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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. field — a subject
  3. file — a line of people
  4. present — the time now
  5. firm — steady
  6. spring — of water
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. key — for a lock
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. key — in music
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. field — farmland
  13. present — a gift
  14. wax — to grow
  15. file — a document
  16. spring — the season
  17. firm — a company
  18. key — the most important part
  19. firm — decided
  20. file — a tool
  21. rush — hurry
  22. present — there
  23. spring — a coil
  24. field — for sport

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