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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. roll — a cake
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. kick — in football
  7. content — happy
  8. roll — a list
  9. wax — to grow
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. shower — to wash
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. lie — to recline
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. chest — of your body
  18. pound — a weight
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. chest — a box
  21. shower — rain
  22. chest — of your body
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. content — the amount

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