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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. last — finally
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. fall — the season
  5. degree — an amount
  6. degree — from a university
  7. wax — to grow
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. fall — to drop
  10. last — to go on
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. degree — temperature
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. content — the amount
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. last — final
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. fall — to drop
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. content — happy
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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