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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. rest — what's left
  9. present — a gift
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. rest — what's left
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. present — there
  16. rest — a break
  17. present — the time now
  18. bound — tied together
  19. row — a line
  20. row — to paddle
  21. bound — certain
  22. bound — obliged
  23. wax — to grow
  24. mine — for digging

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