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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. present — the time now
  4. wax — to grow
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. net — for catching
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. present — a gift
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. content — happy
  15. ball — a great time
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. ball — a dance
  18. rush — hurry
  19. present — there
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. net — in sport
  24. content — the amount

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