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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · capital · pitch · sharp · pass · mate · last · bark

  1. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to spend time
  2. sharp — clever
  3. last — to go on
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. bark — to shout
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. pass — a permit
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. last — finally
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. mate — to breed
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. mate — a friend
  17. mate — a partner
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. capital — a city
  20. wax — to grow
  21. capital — money
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. pitch — completely
  24. last — final

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