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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. staff — a stick
  3. mark — a trace
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. staff — employees
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. staff — employees
  8. tube — the underground
  9. last — finally
  10. mark — a grade
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. tube — a container
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. last — to go on
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. sharp — clever
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. patient — a sick person
  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