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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. club — a group
  3. cap — a hat
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. club — for dancing
  6. stand — to bear
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. clip — a video
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. mark — a trace
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. mark — a grade
  14. wax — to grow
  15. clip — to cut
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. club — for golf
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. clip — for paper
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. stem — to come from
  23. cap — of ice
  24. cap — a lid

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