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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. march — the month
  3. object — a thing
  4. current — of water
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. wax — to grow
  8. last — finally
  9. last — to go on
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. current — electric
  12. object — to protest
  13. object — an aim
  14. march — music
  15. current — happening now
  16. craft — boats
  17. rule — a law
  18. craft — a skill
  19. bark — to shout
  20. last — final
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. rule — government
  24. bark — of a tree

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