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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: vault · band · wax · march · shower · season · can · plane

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. season — of the year
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. can — a tin
  7. march — the month
  8. band — a music group
  9. band — a ring
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. march — music
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. wax — to grow
  14. march — the month
  15. shower — rain
  16. plane — a tool
  17. can — a tin
  18. can — to be able to
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. vault — a safe
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. season — in sport
  24. shower — to wash

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