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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. bass — low music
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. pop — to visit
  5. march — the month
  6. wax — to grow
  7. march — the month
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. wound — an injury
  11. bass — the fish
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. march — music
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. bore — to drill
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. pop — soda
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. bore — to tire
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. wound — an injury
  24. pop — music

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