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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. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  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. toast — a drink to someone
  2. shower — to wash
  3. face — part of the head
  4. toast — bread
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. face — to confront
  7. rest — what's left
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. tube — the underground
  10. rest — a break
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. shower — rain
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. tube — a container
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. wax — to grow
  18. toast — the most admired
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. face — to point toward
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. dip — to sink
  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