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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: staff · object · mark · wax · ball · foot · last · season

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wax — to grow
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. staff — employees
  5. season — in sport
  6. foot — a measure
  7. mark — a grade
  8. object — to protest
  9. ball — a dance
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. last — to go on
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. last — finally
  16. staff — a stick
  17. last — final
  18. staff — employees
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. ball — a great time
  21. object — a thing
  22. object — an aim
  23. season — of the year
  24. mark — a trace

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