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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. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. wind — moving air
  3. band — a music group
  4. band — a ring
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. fork — in a road
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. wind — moving air
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. season — of the year
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. wax — to grow
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. date — the fruit
  21. season — in sport
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. bowl — a football final

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