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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 do anything ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. spring — the season
  4. wax — to grow
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. charge — electricity
  9. staff — employees
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. staff — employees
  14. spring — of water
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. band — a ring
  17. rash — a series
  18. spring — a coil
  19. band — a music group
  20. charge — a price
  21. staff — a stick
  22. pound — a weight
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. charge — in control

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