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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 120 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 water is too ________________.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. land — a country
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. bat — the animal
  7. land — to come down
  8. cold — an illness
  9. land — ground
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. firm — decided
  12. key — the most important part
  13. firm — a company
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. wax — to grow
  16. key — in music
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. key — for a lock
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. firm — steady
  22. snap — to click
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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