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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. rash — hasty
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. hand — help
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. lean — thin
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. wax — to grow
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. hand — in cards
  13. mate — a partner
  14. rash — a series
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. bass — low music
  17. lean — to bend
  18. mate — to breed
  19. mate — a friend
  20. bass — the fish
  21. chair — a leader
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. chair — to sit on

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