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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. firm — decided
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. firm — steady
  6. band — a ring
  7. capital — a city
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. track — a path
  10. bore — to tire
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. track — to keep track
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. firm — a company
  15. club — for dancing
  16. club — for golf
  17. wax — to grow
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. band — a music group
  20. club — a group
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. bore — to drill
  23. capital — money
  24. track — a song

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