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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 116 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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. bass — the fish
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. key — for a lock
  8. key — in music
  9. wax — to grow
  10. bass — low music
  11. wind — moving air
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. rush — hurry
  14. firm — decided
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. key — the most important part
  18. wind — moving air
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. race — humankind
  21. race — the arms race
  22. firm — a company
  23. race — a contest
  24. firm — steady

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