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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. drill — army training
  3. wax — to grow
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. perch — the fish
  6. content — happy
  7. root — of a plant
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. content — the amount
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. hand — in cards
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. root — of a word
  20. stand — to bear
  21. hand — help
  22. drill — the tool
  23. root — the cause
  24. drill — a practice

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