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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. wax — to grow
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. wake — a trail
  6. spell — magic
  7. march — the month
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. chest — of your body
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. march — the month
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. chest — a box
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. band — a music group
  18. spell — a short time
  19. kick — in football
  20. chest — of your body
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. spell — letters
  23. band — a ring
  24. wake — before a funeral

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