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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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. net — in sport
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. net — after costs
  5. shower — to wash
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. shower — rain
  8. mate — a friend
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. mate — to breed
  11. net — for catching
  12. perch — the fish
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. root — the cause
  17. root — of a word
  18. mate — a partner
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. wax — to grow
  21. root — of a plant
  22. lean — thin
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. lean — to bend

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