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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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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. wax — to grow
  4. band — a ring
  5. stem — to come from
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. chest — of your body
  10. chest — of your body
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. content — the amount
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. content — happy
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. chest — a box
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. temple — a place of worship

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