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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. march — the month
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. kid — child
  6. club — for dancing
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. cue — a hint
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. march — the month
  11. club — a group
  12. club — for golf
  13. sharp — clever
  14. track — to keep track
  15. kid — to tease
  16. cue — a signal
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. track — a path
  19. track — a song
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. march — music
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. wax — to grow
  24. cue — for pool

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