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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. wax — to grow
  3. present — there
  4. tube — a container
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. field — for sport
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. field — a subject
  10. present — a gift
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. field — farmland
  14. date — the fruit
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. tube — the underground
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. present — the time now
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. kid — child
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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