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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. ground — a position
  3. mug — a cup
  4. date — the fruit
  5. wax — to grow
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. root — the cause
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. cap — a hat
  13. ground — crushed
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. ground — the earth
  16. cap — a lid
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. rush — hurry
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. root — of a word
  22. root — of a plant
  23. mug — to rob
  24. cap — of ice

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