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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bay · wax · bass · chest · net · cell · kick · wake

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. chest — of your body
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. bass — low music
  7. wake — a trail
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. cell — in biology
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. chest — a box
  13. bass — the fish
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. chest — of your body
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. net — for catching
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. net — after costs
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. cell — a phone
  22. kick — in football
  23. net — in sport
  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