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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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Word bank
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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: wax · last · bore · cold · race · cue · coach · staff

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. staff — a stick
  3. race — humankind
  4. cue — a signal
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. race — a contest
  7. cue — a hint
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. staff — employees
  13. last — final
  14. bore — to tire
  15. cold — not warm
  16. cold — an illness
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. bore — to drill
  20. cue — for pool
  21. staff — employees
  22. last — finally
  23. wax — to grow
  24. last — to go on

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