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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. face — part of the head
  3. face — to confront
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. wax — to grow
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. wind — moving air
  8. net — after costs
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. face — to point toward
  13. net — in sport
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. band — a ring
  16. wind — moving air
  17. pit — in a race
  18. net — for catching
  19. sharp — clever
  20. perch — the fish
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. pit — a hole
  24. perch — for a bird

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