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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: game · date · cold · chip · pass · wax · pitcher · band

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. band — a ring
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. wax — to grow
  9. game — wild animals
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. date — the fruit
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. chip — to eat
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. game — a match
  18. pass — a permit
  19. chip — for betting
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. cold — an illness
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. band — a music group

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