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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: shower · wax · plane · fan · lean · content · present · swing

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. present — the time now
  3. plane — a tool
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. swing — music
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. content — happy
  10. lean — thin
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. wax — to grow
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. present — a gift
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. swing — to play on
  17. content — the amount
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. lean — to bend
  21. present — there
  22. shower — rain
  23. swing — in golf
  24. wax — in the ear

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