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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. rest — what's left
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. object — to protest
  8. object — a thing
  9. dip — to sink
  10. face — to confront
  11. face — part of the head
  12. wax — to grow
  13. kid — to tease
  14. net — for catching
  15. object — an aim
  16. face — to point toward
  17. net — in sport
  18. cell — in biology
  19. rest — a break
  20. cell — a phone
  21. kid — child
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. rest — what's left
  24. net — after costs

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