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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. bank — of a river
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. last — final
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. shower — to wash
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. shower — rain
  12. bat — the animal
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. club — for golf
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. bank — for money
  18. club — for dancing
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. bank — for money
  21. wax — to grow
  22. last — to go on
  23. club — a group
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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