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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. club — a group
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. drill — army training
  6. club — for dancing
  7. stand — to bear
  8. fine — all right
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. drill — the tool
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. wax — to grow
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. bat — the animal
  15. club — for golf
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. drill — a practice
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. fine — high quality
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. fine — a penalty

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