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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. rush — hurry
  3. key — the most important part
  4. wax — to grow
  5. band — a ring
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. file — a tool
  8. key — for a lock
  9. file — a line of people
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. file — a document
  15. band — a music group
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. cap — a hat
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. cap — of ice
  22. key — in music
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. cap — a lid

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