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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 124 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 felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. chest — of your body
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. last — finally
  6. mark — a trace
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. wind — moving air
  10. march — music
  11. bass — low music
  12. rush — hurry
  13. bass — the fish
  14. mark — a grade
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. march — the month
  17. wax — to grow
  18. last — to go on
  19. wind — moving air
  20. march — the month
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. last — final
  24. chest — a box

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