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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. court — for sport
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. last — to go on
  5. craft — a skill
  6. file — a line of people
  7. craft — boats
  8. file — a tool
  9. file — a document
  10. land — ground
  11. last — finally
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. fall — to drop
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. fall — the season
  16. staff — employees
  17. land — to come down
  18. land — a country
  19. fall — to drop
  20. court — of a king
  21. last — final
  22. staff — a stick
  23. staff — employees
  24. court — of law

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