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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. snap — to click
  3. rest — a break
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. rest — what's left
  8. wax — to grow
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. can — a tin
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. capital — a city
  15. rest — what's left
  16. face — part of the head
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. can — to be able to
  21. face — to point toward
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. face — to confront
  24. can — a tin

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