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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: shower · racket · bear · rule · wax · temple · fan · content

  1. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. content — happy
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. wax — to grow
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. content — the amount
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. bear — the animal
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. shower — to wash
  20. rule — a law
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. rule — government
  24. shower — rain

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