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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. shower — rain
  4. craft — boats
  5. content — the amount
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. saw — the tool
  8. shower — to wash
  9. content — happy
  10. snap — to click
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. wax — to grow
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. saw — the tool
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. craft — a skill
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. content — videos and posts

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