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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. shower — rain
  4. chair — a leader
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. plane — a tool
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. ground — a position
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. ground — the earth
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. shower — to wash
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. wax — to grow
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. ground — crushed
  24. pound — a weight

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