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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. mine — for digging
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. mark — a trace
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. firm — steady
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. saw — the tool
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. mark — a grade
  12. pop — to visit
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. pop — music
  15. cold — an illness
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. saw — the tool
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. firm — a company
  21. cold — not warm
  22. wax — to grow
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. firm — decided

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