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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. track — to keep track
  3. fine — all right
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. content — happy
  8. fine — high quality
  9. tube — a container
  10. track — a song
  11. content — the amount
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. date — the fruit
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. tube — the underground
  16. wax — to grow
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. row — to paddle
  19. track — a path
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. row — a line

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