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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. file — a line of people
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wound — an injury
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. key — the most important part
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. file — a tool
  10. file — a document
  11. key — for a lock
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. key — in music
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. content — happy
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. perch — the fish
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. wax — to grow
  23. content — the amount
  24. wax — for sculpting

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