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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. wax — to grow
  4. land — to come down
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. cold — not warm
  7. cell — a phone
  8. bass — the fish
  9. craft — a skill
  10. cell — in biology
  11. bass — low music
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. drill — army training
  18. land — a country
  19. craft — boats
  20. drill — a practice
  21. cold — an illness
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. rush — hurry
  24. land — ground

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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