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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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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. cap — a lid
  4. cap — a hat
  5. spring — the season
  6. wax — to grow
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. last — finally
  9. last — to go on
  10. cap — of ice
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. spring — a coil
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. spring — of water
  19. deal — to handle
  20. dip — to sink
  21. last — final
  22. cold — an illness
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. cold — not warm

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