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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 116 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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. season — of the year
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. wax — to grow
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. cue — a signal
  9. season — in sport
  10. last — to go on
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. vault — a safe
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. cue — a hint
  17. last — final
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. last — finally
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. cue — for pool
  24. branch — a division

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