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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. saw — the tool
  5. pop — music
  6. pop — soda
  7. saw — the tool
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. club — for dancing
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. club — a group
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. press — newspapers
  15. cold — an illness
  16. press — a publisher
  17. firm — decided
  18. pop — to visit
  19. wax — to grow
  20. press — to push
  21. club — for golf
  22. firm — a company
  23. firm — steady
  24. cold — not warm

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