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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. march — music
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. wax — to grow
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. fall — to drop
  9. file — a line of people
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. file — a document
  14. march — the month
  15. fall — to drop
  16. march — the month
  17. wind — moving air
  18. key — the most important part
  19. file — a tool
  20. fall — the season
  21. key — in music
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. wind — moving air
  24. leaves — to go away

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