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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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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: shower · pound · row · cabinet · drill · track · wax · nail

  1. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. drill — the tool
  5. drill — a practice
  6. wax — to grow
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. track — a song
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. row — to paddle
  12. pound — a weight
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. shower — to wash
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. shower — rain
  17. row — a line
  18. drill — army training
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. track — to keep track
  24. nail — for a hammer

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