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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 124 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: pitcher · land · hand · board · fork · wax · ruler · dip

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. wax — to grow
  5. land — to come down
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. board — a committee
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. hand — help
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. land — ground
  13. hand — in cards
  14. board — to get on
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. dip — to sink
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. land — a country
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. fork — in a road

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