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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. tear — from crying
  4. spring — the season
  5. spring — a coil
  6. march — the month
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. vault — a safe
  12. bass — the fish
  13. bass — low music
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tear — to rip
  16. wax — to grow
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. march — music
  20. wind — moving air
  21. march — the month
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. spring — of water
  24. racket — for tennis

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