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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. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. wax — to grow
  3. bear — the animal
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. tube — the underground
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. bear — the animal
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. wind — moving air
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. wind — moving air
  17. craft — a skill
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. tube — a container
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. pitcher — a jug

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