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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. track — a song
  4. track — to keep track
  5. wax — to grow
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. track — a path
  9. board — a committee
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. land — to come down
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. board — to get on
  14. scale — size or range
  15. kid — to tease
  16. kid — child
  17. foot — a measure
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. scale — in music
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. land — ground

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