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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. kick — in football
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. last — to go on
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. pit — a hole
  7. spell — a short time
  8. fall — to drop
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. game — a match
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. pit — in a race
  14. last — finally
  15. fall — the season
  16. hand — in cards
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. game — wild animals
  19. spell — letters
  20. spell — magic
  21. hand — help
  22. fall — to drop
  23. last — final
  24. kick — a thrill

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