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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: bound · march · stick · mate · drill · rule · wax · wake

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. mate — a friend
  3. wax — to grow
  4. march — the month
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. rule — a law
  7. bound — obliged
  8. march — music
  9. mate — to breed
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. drill — army training
  12. march — the month
  13. bound — certain
  14. wake — a trail
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. drill — a practice
  17. bound — tied together
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. mate — a partner
  24. rule — government

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