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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. field — for sport
  5. field — farmland
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. rush — hurry
  8. bank — for money
  9. march — the month
  10. tube — a container
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. court — for sport
  13. field — a subject
  14. court — of a king
  15. march — the month
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. bank — for money
  18. march — music
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. wax — to grow
  21. tube — the underground
  22. bank — of a river
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. court — of law

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