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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. bat — the animal
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cue — for pool
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. rock — music
  8. squash — the sport
  9. net — after costs
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. rock — a stone
  12. net — in sport
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. squash — to crush
  16. cue — a hint
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. cue — a signal
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. net — for catching
  24. wax — to grow

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