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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. ground — crushed
  3. object — an aim
  4. object — to protest
  5. wind — moving air
  6. can — to be able to
  7. content — happy
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. object — a thing
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. content — the amount
  12. tear — to rip
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — from crying
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. ground — the earth
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. can — a tin
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. can — a tin
  24. wax — to grow

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