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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. march — the month
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. bound — tied together
  7. bound — obliged
  8. march — the month
  9. root — of a plant
  10. root — the cause
  11. shower — to wash
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. kid — child
  14. net — after costs
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. net — in sport
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. march — music
  19. wax — to grow
  20. net — for catching
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. shower — rain
  23. root — of a word
  24. bound — certain

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