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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. band — a music group
  6. squash — the sport
  7. net — in sport
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. mug — a face
  11. squash — to crush
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. wax — to grow
  14. mug — a cup
  15. field — for sport
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. field — a subject
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. band — a ring
  21. net — for catching
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. field — farmland
  24. net — after costs

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