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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. key — in music
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. band — a music group
  5. key — for a lock
  6. toast — bread
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. wax — to grow
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. sharp — clever
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. mine — for digging
  17. pass — a permit
  18. key — the most important part
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. bark — to shout
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. mine — belonging to me

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