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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 116 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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. content — the amount
  3. scale — size or range
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. root — of a plant
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. scale — in music
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. root — the cause
  11. root — of a word
  12. hand — help
  13. tube — a container
  14. content — happy
  15. hand — in cards
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. tube — the underground
  18. tube — in a tire

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