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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. snap — to click
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. last — finally
  7. cue — a hint
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. cue — a signal
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. wax — to grow
  13. pit — in a race
  14. last — final
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. cue — for pool
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. last — to go on
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pit — a hole
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. wake — a trail
  24. ball — a dance

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