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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 information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. march — music
  3. last — final
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. march — the month
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. lean — thin
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. file — a line of people
  10. mug — to rob
  11. net — in sport
  12. march — the month
  13. last — to go on
  14. mark — a trace
  15. net — for catching
  16. lean — to bend
  17. mug — a face
  18. wax — to grow
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. mark — a grade
  21. last — finally
  22. net — after costs
  23. mug — a cup
  24. file — a 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