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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. band — a music group
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. pass — a permit
  5. last — final
  6. mate — to breed
  7. last — to go on
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. fine — all right
  10. deal — to handle
  11. mark — a grade
  12. last — finally
  13. mark — a trace
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. mate — a partner
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. mate — a friend
  20. band — a ring
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. fine — high quality
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. 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