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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 120 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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. bound — obliged
  3. bound — tied together
  4. swing — to play on
  5. march — the month
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. march — music
  8. band — a ring
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. swing — music
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. cap — a hat
  15. wax — to grow
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. swing — in golf
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. stem — to come from
  20. bound — certain
  21. cap — of ice
  22. cap — a lid
  23. march — the month
  24. band — a music group

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