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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  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. mate — a friend
  2. firm — steady
  3. march — music
  4. dip — to sink
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. pop — to visit
  7. firm — decided
  8. wax — to grow
  9. firm — a company
  10. staff — employees
  11. march — the month
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. march — the month
  14. mate — a partner
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. pop — music
  18. mate — to breed
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. staff — employees
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. staff — a stick
  23. pop — soda
  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