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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. tube — the underground
  3. club — for dancing
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. wind — moving air
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. club — for golf
  13. spring — of water
  14. mine — for digging
  15. spring — the season
  16. wake — a trail
  17. tube — a container
  18. club — a group
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. wax — to grow
  21. wind — moving air
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. spring — a coil
  24. wind — to turn a key

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