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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. cap — a hat
  6. bass — the fish
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. capital — money
  9. cap — of ice
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. wax — to grow
  14. snap — to click
  15. cap — a lid
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. present — the time now
  19. present — a gift
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. bass — low music
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. capital — a city

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