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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. march — music
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. march — the month
  7. bulb — for light
  8. march — the month
  9. wax — to grow
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. season — in sport
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. bulb — for light
  15. wind — moving air
  16. wind — moving air
  17. drill — the tool
  18. drill — army training
  19. season — of the year
  20. drill — a practice
  21. land — a country
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. land — ground

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