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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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. march — the month
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. march — the month
  5. drill — army training
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. stock — shares
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. drill — a practice
  11. drill — the tool
  12. stock — goods
  13. land — to come down
  14. march — music
  15. land — ground
  16. snap — to click
  17. tear — to rip
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. tear — from crying
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. tear — from crying
  22. land — a country
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. wax — to grow

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