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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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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: march · lean · toast · roll · nail · club · wax · wind

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. club — for golf
  3. march — the month
  4. wax — to grow
  5. club — for dancing
  6. toast — bread
  7. lean — to bend
  8. roll — a cake
  9. march — the month
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. lean — thin
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. march — music
  14. wind — moving air
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. club — a group
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. roll — a list
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. roll — on a roll

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