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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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. wax — to grow
  3. bass — low music
  4. spring — of water
  5. tear — from crying
  6. charge — in control
  7. chest — a box
  8. spring — a coil
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. tear — to rip
  11. charge — electricity
  12. ground — crushed
  13. spring — the season
  14. charge — a price
  15. suit — clothes
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. ground — the earth
  18. ground — a position
  19. suit — to fit
  20. tear — from crying
  21. bass — the fish
  22. chest — of your body
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. chest — of your body

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