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

  1. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. wake — a trail
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. degree — temperature
  5. mug — a face
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. mug — to rob
  9. degree — from a university
  10. race — the arms race
  11. race — humankind
  12. degree — an amount
  13. race — a contest
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. hand — in cards
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. hand — help
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. wax — to grow
  22. chip — for betting
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. mug — a cup

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