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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 120 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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. swing — to play on
  7. tear — from crying
  8. swing — in golf
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. swing — music
  11. tear — to rip
  12. cap — a lid
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. cap — of ice
  15. wax — to grow
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. content — the amount
  20. bat — the animal
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. cap — a hat
  23. content — happy
  24. nail — for a hammer

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