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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. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. pop — music
  4. pop — to visit
  5. pop — soda
  6. spring — a coil
  7. rock — music
  8. spring — the season
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. chest — a box
  11. wax — to grow
  12. charge — electricity
  13. chest — of your body
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. chest — of your body
  20. spring — of water
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. charge — a price
  24. charge — in control

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