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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. club — a group
  3. club — for dancing
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. dip — to sink
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. club — for golf
  9. shower — rain
  10. shower — to wash
  11. pop — to visit
  12. mine — for digging
  13. pop — soda
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. spell — magic
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. wax — to grow
  20. pop — music
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. spell — letters
  24. spell — a short time

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