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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 · racket · pop · ruler · last · stand · chest · wound

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. last — to go on
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. last — final
  7. pop — soda
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. wound — an injury
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. chest — of your body
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. wax — to grow
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. pop — music
  18. pop — to visit
  19. wound — an injury
  20. chest — of your body
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. stand — to bear
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. chest — a box

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