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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: temple · pitch · rest · lash · land · wax · saw · shower

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. land — ground
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. rest — what's left
  7. land — to come down
  8. saw — the tool
  9. shower — rain
  10. wax — to grow
  11. saw — the tool
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. rest — what's left
  14. land — a country
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. pitch — completely
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. shower — to wash
  23. rest — a break
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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