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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 116 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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. wax — to grow
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. march — music
  6. march — the month
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. march — the month
  9. bear — the animal
  10. tear — to rip
  11. drill — a practice
  12. tear — from crying
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. bear — the animal
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. drill — the tool
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. drill — army training
  23. tear — from crying
  24. mine — for digging

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