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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 116 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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. wax — to grow
  4. fall — the season
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. march — the month
  8. march — music
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. stock — goods
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. sharp — clever
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. march — the month
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. fall — to drop
  19. fall — to drop
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. band — a ring
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. stock — shares

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