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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. wax — to grow
  5. land — a country
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. last — final
  8. wake — a trail
  9. perch — the fish
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. last — to go on
  13. last — finally
  14. land — ground
  15. land — to come down
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. can — to be able to
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. can — a tin
  23. can — a tin
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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