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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 120 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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. wax — to grow
  3. shower — to wash
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. bear — the animal
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. mine — for digging
  8. swing — in golf
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. rash — hasty
  12. shower — rain
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. swing — music
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. swing — to play on
  20. bear — the animal
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. rash — a series
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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