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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. fall — the season
  3. club — for dancing
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. degree — an amount
  6. shower — to wash
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. club — for golf
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. stock — shares
  12. lie — to recline
  13. stock — goods
  14. perch — the fish
  15. degree — from a university
  16. fall — to drop
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. fall — to drop
  19. degree — temperature
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. club — a group
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. shower — rain

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