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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. band — a music group
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. roll — a cake
  7. band — a ring
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. last — final
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. bat — the animal
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. last — to go on
  19. wake — a trail
  20. wax — to grow
  21. roll — a list
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. safe — out of danger

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