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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 124 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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. mate — a partner
  4. craft — a skill
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. wax — to grow
  7. net — in sport
  8. net — after costs
  9. chip — to eat
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. toast — bread
  12. mate — a friend
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. craft — boats
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. chip — for betting
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. net — for catching
  24. mate — to breed

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