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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. wax — to grow
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. last — to go on
  5. fall — to drop
  6. mate — a friend
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. last — final
  9. ball — a great time
  10. wind — moving air
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. fall — the season
  14. wind — moving air
  15. fall — to drop
  16. mate — to breed
  17. mate — a partner
  18. ball — a dance

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