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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 124 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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. present — there
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. present — a gift
  6. drill — army training
  7. deal — to handle
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. content — the amount
  10. drill — the tool
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. game — wild animals
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. wax — to grow
  15. file — a line of people
  16. file — a document
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. drill — a practice
  20. rush — hurry
  21. content — happy
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. file — a tool
  24. game — a match

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