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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. craft — boats
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. wax — to grow
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. vault — a safe
  9. last — finally
  10. chair — a leader
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. spell — magic
  15. craft — a skill
  16. last — to go on
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. spell — a short time
  21. perch — the fish
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. spell — letters

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