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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 120 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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. rest — what's left
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. wax — to grow
  6. key — for a lock
  7. present — the time now
  8. rest — a break
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. degree — an amount
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. key — in music
  14. degree — temperature
  15. drill — army training
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. degree — from a university
  19. rest — what's left
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. drill — a practice
  22. drill — the tool
  23. key — the most important part
  24. present — there

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