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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. game — a match
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. field — a subject
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. season — of the year
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. last — finally
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. last — final
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. field — for sport
  19. season — in sport
  20. game — wild animals
  21. field — farmland
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. wax — to grow

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