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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. dip — to sink
  3. last — final
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. last — to go on
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. march — the month
  8. kick — in football
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. wax — to grow
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. last — finally
  15. chip — to eat
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. march — the month
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. march — music
  21. chip — for betting
  22. swing — in golf
  23. swing — music
  24. swing — to play on

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