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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. field — farmland
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. field — for sport
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. foot — a measure
  13. field — a subject
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. lie — to recline
  17. track — a song
  18. dip — to sink
  19. track — to keep track
  20. scale — in music
  21. wax — to grow
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. track — a path
  24. scale — size or range

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