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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. field — farmland
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. bound — obliged
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. last — to go on
  8. saw — the tool
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. field — for sport
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. bound — tied together
  13. tear — to rip
  14. wax — to grow
  15. bound — certain
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. last — finally
  18. firm — a company
  19. tear — from crying
  20. firm — decided
  21. tear — from crying
  22. saw — the tool
  23. firm — steady
  24. field — a subject

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