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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. shower — to wash
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. root — of a word
  6. root — of a plant
  7. root — the cause
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. spell — a short time
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. wax — to grow
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. tube — a container
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. spell — letters
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. foot — a measure
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. spell — magic
  21. shower — rain
  22. tube — the underground
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. bowl — to roll

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