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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 120 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. march — the month
  3. field — a subject
  4. march — music
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. stem — to come from
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. march — the month
  11. content — happy
  12. field — for sport
  13. content — the amount
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. field — farmland
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. wax — to grow

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