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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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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: rest · bay · wax · rule · dip · last · content · rock

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. rule — government
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. last — final
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. rest — what's left
  8. rule — a law
  9. rock — music
  10. rest — what's left
  11. dip — to sink
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. rest — a break
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. rock — a stone
  16. wax — to grow
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. last — finally
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. last — to go on
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. content — the amount

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