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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 116 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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. pop — to visit
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. field — for sport
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. march — music
  10. wax — to grow
  11. march — the month
  12. march — the month
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. lie — to recline
  15. pop — soda
  16. snap — to click
  17. field — farmland
  18. field — a subject
  19. spring — of water
  20. pop — music
  21. spring — a coil
  22. spring — the season
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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