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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. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. cold — an illness
  6. band — a ring
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. bat — the animal
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. rush — hurry
  15. plane — a tool
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. band — a music group
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. wax — to grow
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. cold — not warm

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