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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. shower — to wash
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. root — of a word
  5. file — a line of people
  6. file — a document
  7. wax — to grow
  8. craft — a skill
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. ball — a great time
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. shower — rain
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. ball — a dance
  16. craft — boats
  17. root — the cause
  18. root — of a plant
  19. game — wild animals
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. game — a match
  24. straw — dry grass

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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