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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. wax — to grow
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. cold — not warm
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. mug — to rob
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. last — finally
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. mug — a face
  15. staff — employees
  16. staff — employees
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. cold — an illness
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. mug — a cup
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. last — to go on
  24. staff — a stick

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