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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: bay · nail · firm · drill · last · date · court · wake

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. drill — the tool
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. wake — a trail
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. date — the fruit
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. court — of law
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. firm — steady
  13. last — final
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. drill — a practice
  16. last — finally
  17. firm — a company
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. last — to go on
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. court — for sport
  23. drill — army training
  24. firm — decided

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