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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. kid — to tease
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. squash — to crush
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. wax — to grow
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. kid — child
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. squash — the sport
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. pound — a weight

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