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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 120 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 is an ace ________________.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. craft — boats
  3. pop — to visit
  4. key — the most important part
  5. mate — a friend
  6. mate — to breed
  7. mate — a partner
  8. pop — music
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. shower — to wash
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. shower — rain
  14. mine — for digging
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. key — for a lock
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. wax — to grow
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. pop — soda
  21. craft — a skill
  22. key — in music
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. mine — an explosive

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