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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. spell — letters
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. pop — to visit
  5. tube — a container
  6. tube — the underground
  7. fine — all right
  8. spell — magic
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. pop — music
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. scale — size or range
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. wax — to grow
  16. pop — soda
  17. fine — high quality
  18. band — a ring
  19. band — a music group
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. scale — in music
  24. spell — a short time

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