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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: perch · rest · saw · wax · mate · last · ruler · bat

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. last — final
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. rest — what's left
  6. wax — to grow
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. bat — the animal
  10. saw — the tool
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. mate — to breed
  13. perch — the fish
  14. last — finally
  15. rest — what's left
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. mate — a partner
  18. last — to go on
  19. saw — the tool
  20. mate — a friend
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. rest — a break

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