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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'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. swing — to play on
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. bore — to tire
  5. cue — a signal
  6. present — the time now
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. swing — music
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. bore — to drill
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. cue — for pool
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. swing — in golf
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. present — a gift
  21. present — there
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. vault — a safe
  24. wax — to grow

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