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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 120 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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. wax — to grow
  3. march — the month
  4. cell — a phone
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. march — the month
  8. mate — to breed
  9. cell — in biology
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. degree — an amount
  13. last — finally
  14. squash — the sport
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. degree — temperature
  17. mate — a friend
  18. mate — a partner
  19. march — music
  20. last — final
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. squash — to crush
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. degree — from a university

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