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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. land — ground
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. land — a country
  5. scale — size or range
  6. shower — to wash
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. wax — to grow
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. spring — the season
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. spring — of water
  19. land — to come down
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. dip — to sink
  22. shower — rain
  23. spring — a coil
  24. scale — in music

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