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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. march — music
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. wake — a trail
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. lie — to recline
  9. march — the month
  10. staff — employees
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. charge — in control
  18. kick — in football
  19. charge — a price
  20. pound — a weight
  21. staff — a stick
  22. wax — to grow
  23. staff — employees
  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