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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. cap — of ice
  4. lie — to recline
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. wax — to grow
  7. mine — for digging
  8. pop — to visit
  9. cap — a hat
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. kid — child
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. pop — soda
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. prune — to trim
  16. pop — music
  17. prune — to trim
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. kid — to tease
  20. cap — a lid
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. wax — for sculpting

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