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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. cap — of ice
  3. band — a ring
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. staff — a stick
  6. drill — army training
  7. staff — employees
  8. wax — to grow
  9. content — the amount
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. drill — a practice
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. drill — the tool
  14. cap — a hat
  15. content — happy
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. march — the month
  18. march — music
  19. staff — employees
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. cap — a lid
  23. band — a music group
  24. content — videos and posts

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