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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. roll — a cake
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. object — a thing
  5. roll — a list
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. bat — the animal
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. last — to go on
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. last — finally
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. object — an aim
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. wax — to grow
  23. object — to protest
  24. hide — animal skin

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