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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. The ________________ went through the wall.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. spring — a coil
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. root — of a word
  5. game — a match
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. drill — a practice
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. spring — of water
  11. wax — to grow
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. game — wild animals
  14. shower — to wash
  15. root — the cause
  16. spring — the season
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. shower — rain
  19. drill — the tool
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. drill — army training
  22. root — of a plant
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. wax — in the ear

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