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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: spring · press · shower · nail · wax · firm · pitcher · perch

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  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. wax — to grow
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. spring — the season
  5. firm — steady
  6. firm — a company
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. shower — to wash
  9. shower — rain
  10. spring — a coil
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. press — newspapers
  13. firm — decided
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. spring — of water
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. perch — the fish
  21. press — a publisher
  22. press — to push
  23. nail — on a finger
  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