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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 works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. firm — a company
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. chest — of your body
  5. vault — a safe
  6. rash — a series
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. bat — the animal
  10. scale — in music
  11. scale — size or range
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. chest — a box
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. wax — to grow
  19. rash — hasty
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. firm — steady
  22. firm — decided
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. chest — of your body

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