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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. wax — to grow
  3. spring — the season
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. row — to paddle
  9. lean — to bend
  10. rash — a series
  11. row — a line
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. rash — hasty
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. capital — a city
  17. spring — a coil
  18. capital — money
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. scale — size or range
  21. lean — thin
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. spring — of water
  24. rash — on the skin

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