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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. rush — hurry
  3. bass — the fish
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. can — a tin
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. march — music
  9. wind — moving air
  10. can — to be able to
  11. bass — low music
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. march — the month
  14. march — the month
  15. drill — army training
  16. drill — a practice
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. wax — to grow
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. fork — in a road
  23. can — a tin
  24. drill — the tool

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