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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. roll — a cake
  4. roll — a list
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. drill — army training
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. drill — the tool
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. staff — employees
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. capital — a city
  14. drill — a practice
  15. staff — a stick
  16. wax — to grow
  17. capital — money
  18. staff — employees
  19. firm — a company
  20. mine — for digging
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. firm — steady
  23. pass — a permit
  24. firm — decided

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