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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. bound — obliged
  4. spell — a short time
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. bass — low music
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. bound — certain
  15. bore — to tire
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. bound — tied together
  18. spell — magic
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. bore — to drill
  21. wax — to grow
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. bass — the fish
  24. bore — gave birth

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