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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 120 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 surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  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. wave — of the sea
  2. bass — the fish
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. race — the arms race
  6. chest — of your body
  7. race — a contest
  8. chest — of your body
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. kick — in football
  11. chest — a box
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. wax — to grow
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. snap — to click
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. capital — a city
  19. race — humankind
  20. bass — low music
  21. capital — money
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. wax — in the ear
  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