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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wax — to grow
  4. firm — steady
  5. firm — a company
  6. firm — decided
  7. wake — a trail
  8. rash — hasty
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. rash — a series
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. wound — an injury
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. cell — a phone
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. cell — in biology
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. wound — an injury

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