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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. mark — a grade
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. shower — to wash
  5. cap — of ice
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. net — after costs
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. mark — a trace
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. cap — a hat
  13. cap — a lid
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. net — in sport
  21. pitch — completely
  22. wax — to grow
  23. net — for catching
  24. shower — rain

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