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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: court · last · arm · bear · deal · perch · wax · march

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. wax — to grow
  3. bear — the animal
  4. last — final
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. court — for sport
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. march — the month
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. march — music
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. last — to go on
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. court — of law
  17. court — of a king
  18. deal — to handle
  19. march — the month
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. perch — the fish
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. bear — the animal

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