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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: wax · ground · racket · shower · kid · rash · wave · vault

  1. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. kid — to tease
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. shower — rain
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. rash — a series
  12. kid — child
  13. vault — a safe
  14. ground — the earth
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. ground — crushed
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. shower — to wash
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. ground — a position
  21. wax — to grow
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. rash — hasty

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