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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 116 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: wax · ruler · drill · cell · snap · mine · net · shower

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. drill — the tool
  4. shower — rain
  5. net — for catching
  6. cell — in biology
  7. net — after costs
  8. snap — to click
  9. mine — for digging
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. drill — a practice
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. wax — to grow
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. cell — a phone
  17. shower — to wash
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. drill — army training
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. ruler — a monarch

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