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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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. cell — a phone
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. wax — to grow
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. capital — money
  14. mark — a trace
  15. mark — a grade
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. shower — to wash
  18. wake — a trail
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. cell — in biology
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. shower — rain
  23. capital — a city
  24. mark — to pay attention

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