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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: sharp · last · kid · cell · race · wax · bound · bay

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. last — to go on
  3. sharp — clever
  4. bound — certain
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. bound — tied together
  9. cell — a phone
  10. cell — in biology
  11. race — humankind
  12. kid — to tease
  13. race — the arms race
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. last — final
  18. race — a contest
  19. wax — to grow
  20. kid — child
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. last — finally
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. bound — obliged

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