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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. swing — music
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. chest — of your body
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. swing — to play on
  9. rash — hasty
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. rash — a series
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. chest — a box
  16. perch — the fish
  17. content — the amount
  18. swing — in golf
  19. object — to protest
  20. wax — to grow
  21. rush — hurry
  22. chest — of your body
  23. object — an aim
  24. content — happy

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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