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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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Word bank
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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: swing · pitcher · game · wax · foot · fine · chest · staff

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. swing — to play on
  8. foot — a measure
  9. wax — to grow
  10. fine — all right
  11. chest — of your body
  12. swing — music
  13. game — a match
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. swing — in golf
  16. staff — employees
  17. fine — high quality
  18. staff — employees
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. chest — of your body
  21. staff — a stick
  22. chest — a box
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. game — wild animals

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