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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. pound — a weight
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. wax — to grow
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. march — the month
  7. net — after costs
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. press — to push
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. press — newspapers
  13. bat — the animal
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. press — a publisher
  16. net — in sport
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. stand — to bear
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. net — for catching
  24. march — music

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