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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 would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. net — in sport
  4. season — in sport
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. board — a committee
  9. last — final
  10. saw — the tool
  11. board — to get on
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. wax — to grow
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. saw — the tool
  16. rest — what's left
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. net — after costs
  19. season — of the year
  20. net — for catching
  21. last — to go on
  22. last — finally
  23. wake — a trail
  24. rest — what's left

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