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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 band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. saw — the tool
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. tube — a container
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. wax — to grow
  9. chip — for betting
  10. clip — to cut
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. tube — the underground
  14. clip — a video
  15. chip — to eat
  16. wind — moving air
  17. clip — for paper
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. saw — the tool
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. march — the month
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. march — the month

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