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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: staff · foot · capital · pass · chest · pitcher · rash · wax

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. foot — a measure
  4. staff — employees
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. staff — employees
  9. rash — a series
  10. capital — money
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. staff — a stick
  13. pass — a permit
  14. capital — a city
  15. chest — a box
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. rash — hasty
  18. chest — of your body
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. chest — of your body
  22. wax — to grow
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. wax — for sculpting

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