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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. present — a gift
  3. wax — to grow
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. content — the amount
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. can — a tin
  10. band — a ring
  11. march — the month
  12. march — the month
  13. content — happy
  14. prune — to trim
  15. present — the time now
  16. band — a music group
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. prune — to trim
  19. kick — in football
  20. can — to be able to
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. march — music
  24. present — there

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