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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. band — a ring
  3. staff — a stick
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. staff — employees
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. date — the fruit
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. wax — to grow
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. capital — a city
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. band — a music group
  22. vault — a safe
  23. staff — employees
  24. capital — money

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