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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. march — music
  3. mine — for digging
  4. rash — hasty
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. capital — a city
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. chair — a leader
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. can — a tin
  12. firm — a company
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. march — the month
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. firm — decided
  18. rash — a series
  19. firm — steady
  20. can — to be able to
  21. capital — money
  22. can — a tin
  23. march — the month
  24. chair — to sit on

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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