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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 fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. mark — a grade
  4. march — the month
  5. march — the month
  6. content — the amount
  7. fall — to drop
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. content — happy
  10. date — the fruit
  11. fall — the season
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. bass — low music
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. wax — to grow
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. march — music
  23. mark — a trace
  24. fall — to drop

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