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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. bound — obliged
  6. shower — to wash
  7. bound — certain
  8. bound — tied together
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. foot — a measure
  11. wax — to grow
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. march — music
  14. root — of a word
  15. root — of a plant
  16. stem — to come from
  17. march — the month
  18. march — the month
  19. shower — rain
  20. root — the cause
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. foot — the bottom

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