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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mine · wax · bark · last · bowl · shower · rest · mug

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. shower — rain
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. last — to go on
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. wax — to grow
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. bark — to shout
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. last — finally
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. mug — to rob
  15. last — final
  16. mine — for digging
  17. mug — a face
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. rest — a break
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. rest — what's left
  22. rest — what's left
  23. mug — a cup
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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