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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. wax — to grow
  4. chest — a box
  5. board — to get on
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. band — a music group
  9. chest — of your body
  10. board — a committee
  11. chest — of your body
  12. suit — in cards
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. rule — a law
  15. rule — government
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. suit — clothes
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. deal — to handle
  23. suit — to fit
  24. rule — to rule out

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