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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. toast — bread
  4. swing — in golf
  5. swing — music
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. cap — a lid
  10. root — the cause
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. swing — to play on
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. deal — to handle
  15. root — of a word
  16. root — of a plant
  17. mine — for digging
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. wax — to grow
  22. wake — a trail
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. cap — of ice

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