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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. last — finally
  5. ball — a dance
  6. swing — to play on
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. chair — a leader
  9. mark — a trace
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. lie — to recline
  12. swing — in golf
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. last — final
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. wax — to grow
  20. mark — a grade
  21. swing — music
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. last — to go on

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