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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. can — a tin
  4. race — humankind
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. can — to be able to
  7. bore — to tire
  8. race — a contest
  9. bore — to drill
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. wax — to grow
  13. last — final
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. can — a tin
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. band — a music group
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. race — the arms race
  21. last — to go on
  22. last — finally
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. wax — for sculpting

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