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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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. content — happy
  4. wound — an injury
  5. march — the month
  6. board — a committee
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. march — the month
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. degree — from a university
  11. bulb — for light
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. content — the amount
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. board — to get on
  16. bulb — for light
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. march — music
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. degree — temperature
  21. degree — an amount
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. wax — to grow

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