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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 lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. field — for sport
  3. staff — a stick
  4. staff — employees
  5. charge — electricity
  6. staff — employees
  7. chest — of your body
  8. row — a line
  9. field — farmland
  10. charge — a price
  11. bound — tied together
  12. row — to paddle
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. bound — certain
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. charge — in control
  18. bound — obliged
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. field — a subject
  22. wake — a trail
  23. chest — of your body
  24. wax — to grow

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