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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 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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. firm — decided
  3. club — for golf
  4. row — a line
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. wax — to grow
  7. bat — the animal
  8. club — for dancing
  9. wake — a trail
  10. rule — a law
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. chair — a leader
  16. club — a group
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. firm — a company
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. firm — steady
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. row — to paddle
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. rule — government

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