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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

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: foot · bass · coach · file · kid · wax · field · march

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  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. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. kid — to tease
  7. field — for sport
  8. march — the month
  9. field — a subject
  10. march — music
  11. foot — a measure
  12. field — farmland
  13. file — a document
  14. wax — to grow
  15. file — a tool
  16. bass — the fish
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. kid — child
  19. bass — low music
  20. march — the month
  21. file — a line of people
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. foot — part of the body
  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