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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 120 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: present · craft · dip · shower · rest · chest · wax · row

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. craft — boats
  5. chest — a box
  6. rest — what's left
  7. present — a gift
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. present — there
  10. craft — a skill
  11. shower — to wash
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. dip — to sink
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. present — the time now
  17. row — to paddle
  18. rest — what's left
  19. shower — rain
  20. wax — to grow
  21. row — a line
  22. chest — of your body
  23. rest — a break
  24. row — a quarrel

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