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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. row — a line
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. kick — in football
  8. pop — music
  9. pop — to visit
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. ball — a dance
  12. sharp — clever
  13. row — to paddle
  14. bass — low music
  15. cap — of ice
  16. bass — the fish
  17. wax — to grow
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. pop — soda
  20. cap — a lid
  21. ball — a great time
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. cap — a hat

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