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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. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. game — wild animals
  5. cap — a hat
  6. game — a match
  7. cap — of ice
  8. tube — the underground
  9. squash — to crush
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. tube — a container
  13. foot — a measure
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. wax — to grow
  16. rush — hurry
  17. spring — of water
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. cap — a lid
  21. spring — a coil
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. squash — the sport
  24. spring — the season

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