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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. scale — in music
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. pop — music
  5. wax — to grow
  6. spring — of water
  7. spring — the season
  8. pop — soda
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. spring — a coil
  14. spell — letters
  15. scale — size or range
  16. spell — a short time
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. spell — magic
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. straw — dry grass

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