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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  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 — in the ear
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. tube — a container
  7. wound — an injury
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. wind — moving air
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. craft — a skill
  12. tube — the underground
  13. field — a subject
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. craft — boats
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. field — for sport
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. field — farmland
  23. ruler — for measuring
  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