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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. net — in sport
  3. file — a tool
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. firm — decided
  8. season — in sport
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. wax — to grow
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. file — a document
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. season — of the year
  15. file — a line of people
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. band — a ring
  18. band — a music group
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. shower — to wash
  21. net — for catching
  22. firm — steady
  23. net — after costs
  24. shower — rain

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