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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. chest — a box
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. court — of law
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. bass — the fish
  10. press — to push
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bulb — for light
  14. fork — in a road
  15. court — for sport
  16. chest — of your body
  17. court — of a king
  18. press — a publisher
  19. band — a music group
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. bulb — for light
  22. press — newspapers
  23. bass — low music
  24. wax — to grow

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