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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. file — a tool
  3. file — a document
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. wound — an injury
  9. chair — a leader
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. pound — a weight
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. wax — to grow
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. spell — a short time
  20. spell — magic
  21. file — a line of people
  22. spell — letters
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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