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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. club — a group
  4. cap — a hat
  5. club — for dancing
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. cap — of ice
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. pop — soda
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. file — a document
  14. file — a tool
  15. file — a line of people
  16. snap — to click
  17. club — for golf
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. cap — a lid
  20. pop — music
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. pop — to visit
  24. wax — to grow

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