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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: shower · club · race · bat · safe · wax · mouse · chest

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. chest — of your body
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. wax — to grow
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. club — for dancing
  12. race — the arms race
  13. club — for golf
  14. race — humankind
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. shower — to wash
  17. chest — of your body
  18. shower — rain
  19. race — a contest
  20. club — a group
  21. chest — a box
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. wax — for sculpting

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