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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 120 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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. present — there
  3. land — to come down
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. present — a gift
  6. key — for a lock
  7. land — ground
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. present — the time now
  10. key — the most important part
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. row — a line
  14. saw — the tool
  15. wax — to grow
  16. pop — to visit
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. land — a country
  19. saw — the tool
  20. pop — music
  21. key — in music
  22. row — to paddle
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. arm — part of the body

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