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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. root — the cause
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. toast — bread
  5. ground — crushed
  6. root — of a word
  7. race — a contest
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. ground — a position
  11. wax — to grow
  12. field — a subject
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. ground — the earth
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. race — humankind
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. field — farmland
  20. root — of a plant
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. field — for sport
  23. race — the arms race
  24. patient — a sick person

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