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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. swing — to play on
  3. march — the month
  4. rest — what's left
  5. march — music
  6. chest — of your body
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chest — a box
  10. drill — a practice
  11. drill — army training
  12. swing — in golf
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. rest — what's left
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. drill — the tool
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. rest — a break
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. swing — music
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. march — the month
  23. wax — to grow
  24. toast — a drink to someone

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