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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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. file — a line of people
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. file — a tool
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. shower — rain
  9. bass — the fish
  10. firm — a company
  11. bass — low music
  12. bark — to shout
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. firm — steady
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. firm — decided
  18. wax — to grow
  19. file — a document
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. deal — to handle
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. shower — to wash

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