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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. bass — the fish
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. cue — a hint
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. pop — soda
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. cue — for pool
  9. cap — a hat
  10. wax — to grow
  11. bass — low music
  12. cue — a signal
  13. cap — a lid
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. shower — rain
  16. kick — in football
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. pop — to visit
  19. cap — of ice
  20. pop — music
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. nail — for a hammer

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