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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. cue — a signal
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. pop — to visit
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. band — a music group
  8. bank — for money
  9. pop — soda
  10. cue — a hint
  11. cue — for pool
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. rush — hurry
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. pop — music
  18. snap — to click
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. bank — for money
  22. band — a ring
  23. bank — of a river
  24. wax — in the ear

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