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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. rash — hasty
  5. date — the fruit
  6. cold — not warm
  7. cold — an illness
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. rock — music
  12. rock — a stone
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. bass — the fish
  17. wax — to grow
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. land — ground
  20. bass — low music
  21. rash — a series
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. land — a country
  24. ruler — a monarch

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