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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. track — to keep track
  5. wax — to grow
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. mate — a partner
  8. track — a path
  9. track — a song
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. mate — a friend
  15. rush — hurry
  16. hand — help
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. mate — to breed
  22. hand — in cards
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. jam — a tight spot

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