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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. capital — money
  5. rash — hasty
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. bound — tied together
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. bound — certain
  15. deal — to handle
  16. bound — obliged
  17. rash — a series
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. fine — all right
  20. fine — high quality
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. capital — a city
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. snap — to click

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