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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. saw — the tool
  5. perch — the fish
  6. wax — to grow
  7. ball — a dance
  8. saw — the tool
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. content — the amount
  14. capital — money
  15. capital — a city
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. ball — a great time
  20. content — happy
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. wound — an injury
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. saw — past of 'see'

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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