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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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. wax — to grow
  6. scale — size or range
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. hand — help
  9. rush — hurry
  10. content — the amount
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. content — happy
  15. hand — in cards
  16. chair — a leader
  17. mine — for digging
  18. scale — in music
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. chair — a professorship

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