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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. mine — for digging
  3. wax — to grow
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. bore — to tire
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. scale — in music
  10. ground — crushed
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. lie — to recline
  14. saw — the tool
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. bore — to drill
  19. saw — the tool
  20. ground — a position
  21. scale — size or range
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. ground — the earth

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