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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 116 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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. band — a music group
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. drill — the tool
  5. wound — an injury
  6. rest — a break
  7. rest — what's left
  8. wax — to grow
  9. bass — low music
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. rest — what's left
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. bass — the fish
  17. club — a group
  18. band — a ring
  19. club — for dancing
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. club — for golf
  22. stem — to come from
  23. drill — a practice
  24. drill — army training

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