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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. track — to keep track
  5. game — wild animals
  6. track — a song
  7. game — a match
  8. last — to go on
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. track — a path
  12. key — for a lock
  13. bat — the animal
  14. last — final
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. last — finally
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. wax — to grow
  20. key — the most important part
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. dip — to sink
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. mine — for digging

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