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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 124 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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. bound — obliged
  4. wax — to grow
  5. bound — tied together
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. bat — the animal
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. rule — a law
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. mate — a friend
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. tube — the underground
  15. mate — a partner
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. bound — certain
  18. fork — in a road
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. tube — a container
  21. lie — to recline
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. mate — to breed
  24. rule — government

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