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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: drill · wake · wax · capital · last · bass · pass · present

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. drill — a practice
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. capital — a city
  5. pass — a permit
  6. present — a gift
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. present — there
  14. present — the time now
  15. drill — the tool
  16. capital — money
  17. wake — a trail
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. last — to go on
  20. drill — army training
  21. last — final
  22. last — finally
  23. bass — the fish
  24. wax — to grow

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