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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  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 — finally
  2. last — final
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. rest — what's left
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. rest — a break
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. pass — a permit
  13. bark — to shout
  14. last — to go on
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. sharp — clever
  18. chair — a leader
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. rest — what's left
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. chair — a professorship
  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