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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. lie — to recline
  4. charge — a price
  5. staff — employees
  6. ball — a great time
  7. fall — to drop
  8. scale — in music
  9. charge — electricity
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. staff — a stick
  12. scale — size or range
  13. net — for catching
  14. staff — employees
  15. fall — the season
  16. wax — to grow
  17. charge — in control
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. fall — to drop
  21. net — after costs
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. net — in sport
  24. ball — a dance

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