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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. shower — to wash
  3. bat — the animal
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. wax — to grow
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. face — part of the head
  10. tube — a container
  11. key — in music
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. key — the most important part
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. row — a line
  16. row — to paddle
  17. bear — the animal
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. face — to point toward
  20. face — to confront
  21. key — for a lock
  22. bear — the animal
  23. shower — rain
  24. tube — the underground

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