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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. march — the month
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. fall — to drop
  7. fall — to drop
  8. rule — a law
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. kid — child
  11. track — a path
  12. spell — magic
  13. spell — a short time
  14. spell — letters
  15. kid — to tease
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. fall — the season
  18. march — music
  19. track — to keep track
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. rule — government
  22. track — a song
  23. march — the month
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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