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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. shower — to wash
  4. bore — to drill
  5. bark — to shout
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. spell — magic
  9. saw — the tool
  10. shower — rain
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. prune — to trim
  13. pound — a weight
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. bore — to tire
  17. prune — to trim
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. saw — the tool
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. wax — to grow
  22. spell — letters
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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