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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. game — wild animals
  3. plane — a tool
  4. chest — of your body
  5. march — the month
  6. wax — to grow
  7. march — the month
  8. mark — a trace
  9. chest — of your body
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. chest — a box
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. hand — help
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. game — a match
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. hand — in cards
  23. mark — a grade
  24. march — 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