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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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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. band — a music group
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. board — to get on
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. fork — in a road
  11. bore — to drill
  12. bore — to tire
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. wax — to grow
  15. date — the fruit
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. board — a committee

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