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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. wind — moving air
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. file — a document
  7. file — a line of people
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. bore — to drill
  10. wax — to grow
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. bore — to tire
  14. wind — moving air
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. game — a match
  17. file — a tool
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. mine — for digging
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. wax — for sculpting

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