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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. bound — obliged
  3. shower — to wash
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. net — in sport
  6. net — after costs
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. sharp — clever
  10. rest — what's left
  11. pop — music
  12. rest — a break
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. shower — rain
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. bound — tied together
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. net — for catching
  19. bound — certain
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. rest — what's left
  22. pop — to visit
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. wax — to grow

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