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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. pop — music
  3. mate — a partner
  4. chip — to eat
  5. cell — a phone
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. mate — to breed
  10. object — a thing
  11. wax — to grow
  12. capital — money
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. pop — soda
  16. chip — for betting
  17. mate — a friend
  18. pop — to visit
  19. cell — in biology
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. capital — a city
  22. object — an aim
  23. branch — a division
  24. object — to protest

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