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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. shower — rain
  3. mark — a grade
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. wax — to grow
  6. shower — to wash
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. ball — a dance
  9. file — a line of people
  10. bass — low music
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. file — a document
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. bass — the fish
  19. file — a tool
  20. fork — in a road
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. ball — a great time
  24. mark — a trace

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