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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's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. key — in music
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. band — a ring
  8. toast — bread
  9. hand — in cards
  10. court — of a king
  11. drill — the tool
  12. hand — help
  13. court — for sport
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. wax — to grow
  16. key — for a lock
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. court — of law
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. key — the most important part
  22. drill — army training
  23. chair — a leader
  24. drill — a practice

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