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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 120 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. object — a thing
  3. rash — a series
  4. last — final
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. object — an aim
  8. wax — to grow
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. rash — hasty
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. object — to protest
  13. last — to go on
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. board — to get on
  16. last — finally
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. board — a committee

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