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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. file — a line of people
  5. spell — a short time
  6. staff — a stick
  7. race — the arms race
  8. bank — for money
  9. spell — magic
  10. row — a line
  11. present — the time now
  12. staff — employees
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. race — humankind
  15. present — there
  16. staff — employees
  17. file — a document
  18. race — a contest
  19. bank — of a river
  20. bank — for money
  21. wax — to grow
  22. row — to paddle
  23. file — a tool
  24. present — a gift

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