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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. saw — the tool
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. march — music
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. pop — to visit
  7. pop — music
  8. suit — in cards
  9. field — for sport
  10. tear — from crying
  11. march — the month
  12. tear — to rip
  13. march — the month
  14. wax — to grow
  15. field — a subject
  16. saw — the tool
  17. pop — soda
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. tear — from crying
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. suit — clothes
  22. field — farmland
  23. suit — to fit
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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