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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.

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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: band · pop · key · ground · land · drill · wax · suit

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. band — a music group
  3. pop — to visit
  4. wax — to grow
  5. band — a ring
  6. drill — a practice
  7. land — to come down
  8. suit — clothes
  9. land — ground
  10. drill — army training
  11. ground — the earth
  12. suit — to fit
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. drill — the tool
  15. ground — crushed
  16. pop — music
  17. ground — a position
  18. key — for a lock
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. pop — soda
  21. key — in music
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. key — the most important part
  24. suit — in cards

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