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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. rush — hurry
  3. board — to get on
  4. shower — to wash
  5. saw — the tool
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. board — a committee
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. shower — rain
  14. mark — a grade
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. clip — to cut
  17. saw — the tool
  18. mark — a trace
  19. clip — a video
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. clip — for paper
  24. mark — to pay attention

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