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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. scale — size or range
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. clip — a video
  8. bear — the animal
  9. prune — to trim
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. prune — to trim
  12. wax — to grow
  13. clip — to cut
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. rule — government
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. saw — the tool
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. saw — the tool
  21. bear — the animal
  22. rule — a law
  23. clip — for paper
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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