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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 116 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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. sharp — clever
  4. wax — to grow
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cell — in biology
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. board — a committee
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. object — a thing
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. board — to get on
  19. object — an aim
  20. wind — moving air
  21. object — to protest
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. bowl — to roll

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