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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. roll — a cake
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. bank — of a river
  6. roll — a list
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. snap — to click
  14. bank — for money
  15. chip — for betting
  16. wax — to grow
  17. chip — to eat
  18. cold — an illness
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. pop — soda
  21. bank — for money
  22. pop — music
  23. cold — not warm
  24. pop — to visit

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