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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. staff — employees
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. cell — a phone
  6. fork — in a road
  7. march — the month
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. staff — a stick
  10. fall — to drop
  11. staff — employees
  12. last — final
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. last — to go on
  15. march — music
  16. march — the month
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. deal — to handle
  19. fall — the season
  20. fall — to drop
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. last — finally
  24. wax — to grow

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