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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. perch — the fish
  5. pop — music
  6. shower — to wash
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. pop — to visit
  9. game — a match
  10. stock — shares
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. prune — to trim
  13. stock — goods
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. pop — soda
  16. game — wild animals
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. wax — to grow
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. shower — rain
  22. prune — to trim
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. perch — for a bird

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