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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. vault — a safe
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. band — a ring
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. band — a music group
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. rest — a break
  9. object — a thing
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. content — happy
  12. object — an aim
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. rest — what's left
  15. prune — to trim
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. wax — to grow
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. prune — to trim
  21. object — to protest
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. rest — what's left
  24. content — the amount

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