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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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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: land · object · wax · rash · tube · pitcher · spell · dip

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. spell — letters
  3. spell — a short time
  4. land — ground
  5. object — to protest
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. rash — hasty
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. land — a country
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. wax — to grow
  12. object — an aim
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. land — to come down
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. dip — to sink
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. tube — a container
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. spell — magic
  21. rash — a series
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. object — a thing
  24. pitcher — a jug

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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