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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. game — wild animals
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. swing — to play on
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. fall — the season
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — to drop
  10. rule — government
  11. safe — a strongbox
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. swing — in golf
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. band — a ring
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. rule — a law
  20. game — a match
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. wax — to grow
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. swing — music

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