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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. pass — a permit
  3. tear — from crying
  4. chip — to eat
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. chip — for betting
  10. wax — to grow
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. cold — not warm
  13. tear — from crying
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. swing — to play on
  16. bass — low music
  17. cold — an illness
  18. tear — to rip
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. bass — the fish
  21. swing — in golf
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. swing — music
  24. hide — to keep secret

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