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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 · foot · last · club · capital · tube · snap · bat

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. last — to go on
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. capital — a city
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. last — final
  12. club — a group
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. snap — to click
  15. tube — a container
  16. bat — the animal
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. wax — to grow
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. tube — the underground
  21. club — for dancing
  22. capital — money
  23. foot — a measure
  24. club — for golf

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