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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: object · bat · wax · rock · pit · squash · last · bound

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. last — finally
  3. bound — obliged
  4. rock — music
  5. pit — in a race
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. last — to go on
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. object — a thing
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. last — final
  13. wax — to grow
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. bat — the animal
  16. object — to protest
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. bound — certain
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. bound — tied together
  21. object — an aim
  22. rock — a stone
  23. pit — a hole
  24. squash — to crush

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