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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. court — for sport
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. wax — to grow
  6. court — of a king
  7. bank — for money
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. court — of law
  14. chair — a leader
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. bank — for money
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. plane — a tool
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. bank — of a river
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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