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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. march — the month
  3. ground — the earth
  4. scale — size or range
  5. wax — to grow
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. plane — a tool
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. capital — money
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. capital — a city
  17. march — music
  18. scale — in music
  19. ground — a position
  20. rock — music
  21. march — the month
  22. ground — crushed
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. rock — a stone

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