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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. wax — to grow
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. band — a music group
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. bass — low music
  8. game — wild animals
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. mate — to breed
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. bore — to tire
  13. present — there
  14. bass — the fish
  15. game — a match
  16. band — a ring
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. present — the time now
  20. mate — a partner
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. bore — to drill
  23. present — a gift
  24. mate — a friend

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