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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 have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. bound — certain
  3. pop — to visit
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. pop — soda
  7. last — to go on
  8. pop — music
  9. bound — obliged
  10. scale — size or range
  11. wax — to grow
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. staff — employees
  15. staff — employees
  16. last — final
  17. bound — tied together
  18. scale — in music
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. foot — a measure
  22. last — finally
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. staff — a stick

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