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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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. wax — to grow
  3. ground — the earth
  4. ground — a position
  5. squash — the sport
  6. chest — of your body
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. dip — to sink
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. squash — to crush
  15. rash — hasty
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fall — to drop
  19. ground — crushed
  20. chest — a box
  21. chest — of your body
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. fall — the season

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