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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 120 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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. sharp — clever
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. rest — a break
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. kick — in football
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. shower — rain
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wax — to grow
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bear — the animal
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. bear — the animal
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. rest — what's left
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. rest — what's left

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