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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wax · chip · march · rule · pound · row

  1. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. row — a line
  3. march — the month
  4. rule — a law
  5. rule — government
  6. row — to paddle
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. march — music
  11. march — the month
  12. wax — to grow
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. chip — for betting
  15. pound — a weight
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. wax — for sculpting

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