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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 water is too ________________.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. charge — in control
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. swing — in golf
  5. charge — a price
  6. mug — a face
  7. mug — a cup
  8. race — the arms race
  9. wax — to grow
  10. cap — a lid
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. race — a contest
  13. ground — crushed
  14. mug — to rob
  15. charge — electricity
  16. ground — a position
  17. swing — to play on
  18. swing — music
  19. cold — an illness
  20. cap — a hat
  21. race — humankind
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. cap — of ice
  24. ground — the earth

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