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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: hand · bat · shower · tube · wax · saw · present · safe

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. wax — to grow
  3. tube — a container
  4. bat — the animal
  5. present — a gift
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. shower — rain
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. present — the time now
  10. present — there
  11. shower — to wash
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. saw — the tool
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. tube — the underground
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. saw — the tool
  22. hand — in cards
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. hand — help

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