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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: march · court · straw · wound · mark · rock · wax · club

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. mark — a grade
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. rock — music
  9. march — music
  10. club — a group
  11. wax — to grow
  12. wound — an injury
  13. wound — an injury
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. march — the month
  17. court — of a king
  18. court — for sport
  19. mark — a trace
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. court — of law
  22. club — for dancing
  23. club — for golf
  24. rock — a stone

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