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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. bass — low music
  3. last — final
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. bass — the fish
  7. cue — for pool
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. chair — a leader
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. cue — a hint
  14. squash — the sport
  15. squash — to crush
  16. key — in music
  17. wax — to grow
  18. last — finally
  19. cue — a signal
  20. key — for a lock
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. last — to go on
  23. key — the most important part
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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