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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 is an ace ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. mug — a face
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. mug — to rob
  5. shower — to wash
  6. land — ground
  7. pop — music
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. shower — rain
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. pop — soda
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. land — a country
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. pop — to visit
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. wax — to grow
  20. mug — a cup
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. land — to come down
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. mine — for digging

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