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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: wound · content · row · wax · game · coach · shower · toast

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. row — to paddle
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. shower — rain
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. wound — an injury
  10. row — a line
  11. toast — bread
  12. game — wild animals
  13. content — the amount
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. game — a match
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. wound — an injury
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. shower — to wash
  22. content — happy
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. toast — the most admired

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