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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: present · wax · shower · fall · can · straw · court · vault

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. fall — to drop
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. wax — to grow
  6. can — a tin
  7. fall — to drop
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. can — a tin
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. vault — a safe
  12. fall — the season
  13. court — of a king
  14. present — a gift
  15. shower — rain
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. court — for sport
  18. can — to be able to
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. present — the time now
  21. court — of law
  22. shower — to wash
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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