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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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Word bank
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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. mate — a partner
  3. squash — the sport
  4. toast — bread
  5. field — a subject
  6. field — for sport
  7. chip — to eat
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. wind — moving air
  11. mate — a friend
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. bear — the animal
  14. field — farmland
  15. chip — for betting
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. bear — the animal
  18. mate — to breed
  19. wax — to grow
  20. squash — to crush
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wax — for sculpting

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