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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. spell — letters
  3. shower — rain
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. spell — magic
  8. wax — to grow
  9. pop — soda
  10. pop — music
  11. game — a match
  12. track — a path
  13. spell — a short time
  14. ball — a dance
  15. pop — to visit
  16. shower — to wash
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. ball — a great time
  20. track — to keep track
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. game — wild animals
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. safe — a strongbox

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