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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. roll — a list
  3. wax — to grow
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. fall — the season
  9. fall — to drop
  10. bank — for money
  11. bank — for money
  12. bank — of a river
  13. tube — a container
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. fall — to drop
  16. date — the fruit
  17. hand — in cards
  18. tube — the underground
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. hand — help
  21. ground — the earth
  22. ground — a position
  23. roll — a cake
  24. roll — on a roll

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