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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: wax · toast · tear · trunk · kid · shower · row · pitcher

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. tear — from crying
  3. shower — rain
  4. row — to paddle
  5. kid — to tease
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. shower — to wash
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. wax — to grow
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. kid — child
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. toast — bread
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. tear — from crying
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. tear — to rip
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. row — a line
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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