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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wax — to grow
  4. march — the month
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. object — an aim
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. foot — a measure
  12. march — the month
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. date — the fruit
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. march — music
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. object — a thing
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. straw — dry grass

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