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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: pit · toast · swing · wound · present · wax · band · deal

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. swing — in golf
  4. present — there
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. wound — an injury
  11. toast — bread
  12. present — the time now
  13. pit — in a race
  14. present — a gift
  15. wound — an injury
  16. pit — a hole
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. wax — to grow
  20. swing — music
  21. band — a ring
  22. band — a music group
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. deal — to handle

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