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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. squash — to crush
  3. spell — magic
  4. track — a path
  5. track — to keep track
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. pit — a hole
  8. last — finally
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. spell — a short time
  11. spell — letters
  12. track — a song
  13. present — a gift
  14. saw — the tool
  15. present — there
  16. pit — in a race
  17. wax — to grow
  18. last — final
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. saw — the tool
  21. present — the time now
  22. squash — the sport
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. last — to go on

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