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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. spell — magic
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. wind — moving air
  6. pop — music
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. rock — a stone
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. spell — letters
  11. spell — a short time
  12. rock — music
  13. wax — to grow
  14. kid — to tease
  15. ball — a dance
  16. ball — a great time
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. pop — to visit
  21. pop — soda
  22. kid — child
  23. wind — moving air
  24. rush — hurry

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