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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. cell — a phone
  4. cell — in biology
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. land — to come down
  10. board — to get on
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. land — ground
  13. file — a document
  14. wax — to grow
  15. pass — a permit
  16. file — a line of people
  17. file — a tool
  18. board — a committee
  19. foot — a measure
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. land — a country
  24. board — a flat piece

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