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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 120 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 president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. race — the arms race
  3. race — a contest
  4. cue — for pool
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. track — a path
  7. chest — of your body
  8. chest — a box
  9. cue — a hint
  10. race — humankind
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. squash — the sport
  13. bark — to shout
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. cue — a signal
  16. track — to keep track
  17. chest — of your body
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. track — a song
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. wax — to grow
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. squash — the vegetable

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