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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. pop — to visit
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. wax — to grow
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. scale — in music
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. scale — size or range
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. present — the time now
  13. mine — for digging
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. field — farmland
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. field — a subject
  19. present — there
  20. pop — soda
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. field — for sport
  23. pop — music
  24. jam — to spread on bread

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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