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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: rock · dip · band · fan · straw · cue · march · wax

  1. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  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. fan — a supporter
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. rock — a stone
  4. march — the month
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. cue — a hint
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. wax — to grow
  11. band — a music group
  12. march — the month
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. band — a ring
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. cue — for pool
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. cue — a signal
  20. march — music
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. dip — to sink
  23. rock — music
  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