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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: staff · pound · straw · pass · march · capital · swing · wax

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. wax — to grow
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. pound — a weight
  5. staff — employees
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. march — the month
  8. capital — money
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. staff — a stick
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. swing — music
  15. swing — in golf
  16. staff — employees
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. capital — a city
  20. swing — to play on
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. march — music
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. pass — a permit

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