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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. roll — a cake
  3. wax — to grow
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. bank — for money
  6. scale — size or range
  7. bank — for money
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. bat — the animal
  10. roll — a list
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. scale — in music
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. bank — of a river
  15. field — for sport
  16. toast — bread
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. field — a subject
  23. field — farmland
  24. scale — for weighing

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