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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. bore — to tire
  3. last — final
  4. last — to go on
  5. march — music
  6. mate — a friend
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. march — the month
  9. pass — a permit
  10. last — finally
  11. firm — a company
  12. bore — to drill
  13. mate — a partner
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. firm — decided
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. mug — a face
  18. mug — a cup
  19. firm — steady
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. mate — to breed
  22. wax — to grow
  23. mug — to rob
  24. march — the month

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