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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: content · rush · chest · spring · pitcher · wax

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. spring — of water
  5. spring — a coil
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. content — the amount
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. chest — of your body
  10. chest — of your body
  11. wax — to grow
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. rush — hurry
  14. spring — the season
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. content — happy
  18. pitcher — in baseball

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