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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. track — to keep track
  4. land — ground
  5. object — to protest
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. track — a path
  8. track — a song
  9. object — a thing
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. wax — to grow
  12. row — to paddle
  13. sharp — clever
  14. land — a country
  15. row — a line
  16. land — to come down
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. object — an aim
  19. band — a music group
  20. drill — the tool
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. drill — army training
  23. band — a ring
  24. sharp — exactly

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