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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: fine · bass · scale · wound · shower · march · ground · wax

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. 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. bass — the fish
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. fine — high quality
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. scale — size or range
  6. fine — all right
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. ground — a position
  9. wound — an injury
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. shower — to wash
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. wax — to grow
  14. wound — an injury
  15. march — music
  16. scale — in music
  17. bass — low music
  18. march — the month
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. ground — the earth
  21. march — the month
  22. ground — crushed
  23. shower — rain
  24. 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