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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. fall — to drop
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. mark — a trace
  8. mark — a grade
  9. wax — to grow
  10. pop — to visit
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. fall — the season
  14. kick — in football
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. bore — to tire
  17. pop — soda
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. bore — to drill
  20. pop — music
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. row — a line
  23. row — to paddle
  24. fall — to drop

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