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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.

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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: wind · drill · sharp · march · current · lie · content · wax

  1. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. march — the month
  3. sharp — clever
  4. drill — army training
  5. current — of water
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. drill — the tool
  8. current — happening now
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. content — happy
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. wax — to grow
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. march — music
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. content — the amount
  18. wind — moving air
  19. lie — to recline
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. march — the month
  23. current — electric
  24. drill — a practice

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