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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. club — for dancing
  3. shower — rain
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. club — a group
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. content — happy
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. net — for catching
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. season — in sport
  13. net — after costs
  14. stand — to bear
  15. wax — to grow
  16. season — of the year
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. club — for golf
  19. cue — for pool
  20. net — in sport
  21. cue — a signal
  22. content — the amount
  23. cue — a hint
  24. stand — on your feet

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