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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 116 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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. staff — employees
  3. scale — in music
  4. fine — all right
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. staff — employees
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. band — a ring
  9. squash — to crush
  10. fine — high quality
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. court — of a king
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. scale — size or range
  15. court — of law
  16. present — the time now
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. present — a gift
  19. squash — the sport
  20. staff — a stick
  21. court — for sport
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. band — a music group
  24. present — there

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