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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. march — the month
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. march — music
  6. pop — music
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. pop — soda
  10. wax — to grow
  11. staff — a stick
  12. march — the month
  13. wake — a trail
  14. branch — a division
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. toast — bread
  19. staff — employees
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. date — the fruit
  24. staff — employees

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