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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. degree — from a university
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. pitch — completely
  8. degree — an amount
  9. last — to go on
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. degree — temperature
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. chair — a leader
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. last — final
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. last — finally
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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