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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. charge — electricity
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. firm — steady
  7. wax — to grow
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. present — there
  10. chair — a leader
  11. drill — the tool
  12. drill — army training
  13. drill — a practice
  14. charge — in control
  15. firm — a company
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. charge — a price
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — moving air
  20. present — a gift
  21. present — the time now
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. firm — decided

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