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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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Word bank
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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: mark · wax · march · tube · club · content · plane · kid

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. march — music
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. tube — the underground
  6. content — happy
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. club — for golf
  10. club — for dancing
  11. mark — a trace
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. wax — to grow
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. plane — a tool
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. content — the amount
  18. march — the month
  19. tube — a container
  20. march — the month
  21. kid — to tease
  22. club — a group
  23. mark — a grade
  24. tube — in a tire

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