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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. band — a ring
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. race — humankind
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. squash — to crush
  11. wax — to grow
  12. band — a music group
  13. race — the arms race
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. root — of a word
  16. race — a contest
  17. root — the cause
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. squash — the sport
  23. plane — a tool
  24. root — of a plant

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