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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 120 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 refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. march — the month
  4. present — the time now
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. present — there
  7. mug — to rob
  8. march — the month
  9. march — music
  10. mug — a face
  11. file — a tool
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. file — a line of people
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. present — a gift
  16. squash — to crush
  17. wax — to grow
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. file — a document
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. rash — a series
  23. squash — the sport
  24. rash — hasty

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