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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 116 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 put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. mine — for digging
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. capital — a city
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. bank — for money
  9. bank — for money
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. chair — a leader
  12. capital — money
  13. wax — to grow
  14. key — the most important part
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. key — in music
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. key — for a lock
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. bank — of a river
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. chair — a professorship

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