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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. rest — a break
  6. hand — in cards
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. plane — a tool
  10. wax — to grow
  11. pound — a weight
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. rest — what's left
  15. rest — what's left
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. vault — a safe

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