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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: mug · object · chest · march · wax · band · dip · staff

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. march — the month
  3. chest — of your body
  4. mug — a cup
  5. staff — a stick
  6. wax — to grow
  7. march — the month
  8. band — a ring
  9. mug — to rob
  10. band — a music group
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. object — to protest
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. object — an aim
  15. chest — of your body
  16. mug — a face
  17. staff — employees
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. staff — employees
  20. object — a thing
  21. march — music
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. dip — to sink

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