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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 116 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: season · wax · clip · pound · rest · band · bay · pit

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. season — in sport
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. pound — a weight
  8. pit — in a race
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. band — a music group
  11. pit — a hole
  12. band — a ring
  13. wax — to grow
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. clip — for paper
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. rest — what's left
  20. clip — to cut
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. rest — a break
  23. clip — a video
  24. season — of the year

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