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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. field — a subject
  3. foot — a measure
  4. drill — a practice
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. band — a ring
  8. field — farmland
  9. rush — hurry
  10. wax — to grow
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. march — the month
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. drill — the tool
  17. march — the month
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. march — music
  20. band — a music group
  21. can — a tin
  22. can — to be able to
  23. field — for sport
  24. drill — army training

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