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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 had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. kid — to tease
  4. net — for catching
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. rule — a law
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. shower — to wash
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. wax — to grow
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. shower — rain
  18. rule — government
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. deal — to handle
  21. net — after costs
  22. dip — to sink
  23. net — in sport
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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