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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. cue — a hint
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. shower — rain
  7. march — the month
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. rash — a series
  10. dip — to sink
  11. march — music
  12. rash — hasty
  13. cue — for pool
  14. wax — to grow
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. mate — a partner
  18. mate — to breed
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. mine — for digging
  22. cue — a signal
  23. shower — to wash
  24. mate — a friend

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