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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. fine — all right
  5. pop — soda
  6. present — a gift
  7. stand — to bear
  8. capital — money
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. hand — in cards
  11. hand — help
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. fine — high quality
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. pop — music
  16. present — the time now
  17. wax — to grow
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. capital — a city
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. ball — a dance
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. ball — a great time
  24. present — there

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