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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. rock — a stone
  6. bat — the animal
  7. wax — to grow
  8. mark — a grade
  9. rock — music
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. shower — to wash
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. row — a line
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. shower — rain
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. mark — a trace
  20. plane — a tool
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. row — to paddle

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