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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. rest — what's left
  3. staff — employees
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. staff — a stick
  6. net — after costs
  7. bank — for money
  8. net — for catching
  9. staff — employees
  10. net — in sport
  11. wax — to grow
  12. land — to come down
  13. squash — the sport
  14. bank — of a river
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. bank — for money
  17. rest — a break
  18. squash — to crush
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. rest — what's left
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. land — ground
  23. land — a country
  24. snap — to click

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