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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 120 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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. ball — a great time
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. spring — a coil
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. scale — in music
  7. rest — a break
  8. scale — size or range
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. stand — to bear
  12. wax — to grow
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. rest — what's left
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. rest — what's left
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. spring — of water
  20. ball — a dance
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. game — a match
  24. spring — the season

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