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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. bass — the fish
  3. wax — to grow
  4. bore — to drill
  5. mate — to breed
  6. mate — a partner
  7. court — of law
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. tear — to rip
  10. bass — low music
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. mate — a friend
  15. shower — to wash
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. bulb — for light
  18. court — for sport
  19. tear — from crying
  20. shower — rain
  21. tear — from crying
  22. court — of a king
  23. bulb — for light
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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