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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. march — the month
  4. last — to go on
  5. last — finally
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. wound — an injury
  9. cue — a signal
  10. last — final
  11. cue — a hint
  12. march — music
  13. march — the month
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. cue — for pool
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. wax — to grow
  20. branch — a division
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. wound — an injury

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