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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 124 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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. shower — to wash
  3. file — a document
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. shower — rain
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. object — an aim
  11. file — a tool
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. object — to protest
  14. drill — the tool
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. tube — the underground
  17. drill — a practice
  18. drill — army training
  19. file — a line of people
  20. object — a thing
  21. chair — a leader
  22. wax — to grow
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. pitcher — a jug

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