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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 124 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 kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. last — final
  6. scale — size or range
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. court — for sport
  9. dip — to sink
  10. bore — to drill
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. last — to go on
  14. foot — a measure
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. scale — in music
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. wax — to grow
  19. court — of law
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. court — of a king
  22. last — finally
  23. bore — to tire
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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