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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · trunk · swing · saw · cold · shower · fine · mate

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. cold — an illness
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. swing — music
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. mate — a partner
  8. saw — the tool
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. fine — high quality
  11. shower — to wash
  12. mate — to breed
  13. swing — in golf
  14. fine — all right
  15. saw — the tool
  16. mate — a friend
  17. cold — not warm
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. wax — to grow
  20. swing — to play on
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. trunk — of a car

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