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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 116 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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. bound — tied together
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. court — of a king
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. last — to go on
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. drill — army training
  9. bound — obliged
  10. drill — the tool
  11. court — for sport
  12. court — of law
  13. drill — a practice
  14. wake — a trail
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. mug — a cup
  17. mug — to rob
  18. mug — a face
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. last — finally
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. wax — to grow
  24. bound — certain

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