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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 116 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 soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. wound — an injury
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. wound — an injury
  5. cue — a hint
  6. wax — to grow
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. lie — to recline
  9. march — the month
  10. cue — a signal
  11. field — for sport
  12. field — farmland
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. field — a subject
  15. cue — for pool
  16. drill — a practice
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. march — music
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. march — the month
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. drill — the tool

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