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

Word bank: shower · rule · wax · rest · face · pitcher · fork · kid

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. rest — what's left
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. wax — to grow
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rule — government
  8. face — to confront
  9. shower — rain
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. fork — in a road
  14. kid — child
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. face — to point toward
  18. kid — to tease
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. face — part of the head
  22. rest — a break
  23. shower — to wash
  24. 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