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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. wax — to grow
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. game — wild animals
  5. swing — to play on
  6. swing — in golf
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. land — ground
  9. game — a match
  10. land — to come down
  11. fine — all right
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. branch — a division
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. vault — a safe
  20. land — a country
  21. swing — music
  22. fine — high quality
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. fine — a penalty

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