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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. band — a music group
  3. wax — to grow
  4. scale — size or range
  5. pop — music
  6. pop — soda
  7. cell — in biology
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. cell — a phone
  10. bound — obliged
  11. bound — tied together
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. swing — to play on
  14. scale — in music
  15. pop — to visit
  16. bound — certain
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. branch — a division
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. swing — music
  23. swing — in golf
  24. wax — for sculpting

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