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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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. wax — to grow
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. scale — size or range
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. toast — bread
  14. season — of the year
  15. rash — hasty
  16. rash — a series
  17. scale — in music
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. bass — the fish
  21. season — in sport
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. bass — low music
  24. bass — the instrument

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