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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. scale — size or range
  3. rest — what's left
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. rest — what's left
  7. cold — not warm
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. toast — bread
  10. rest — a break
  11. wax — to grow
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. key — in music
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. band — a music group
  16. cold — an illness
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. key — the most important part
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. scale — in music
  22. key — for a lock
  23. band — a ring
  24. lash — to lash out

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