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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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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. ball — a dance
  3. spell — a short time
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. shower — rain
  6. shower — to wash
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. race — humankind
  9. board — a committee
  10. hand — in cards
  11. board — to get on
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. wax — to grow
  14. race — a contest
  15. spell — letters
  16. race — the arms race
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. ball — a great time
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. spell — magic
  23. hand — help
  24. board — a flat piece

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