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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. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. chip — for betting
  3. fork — in a road
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. spell — a short time
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. race — a contest
  8. capital — a city
  9. spell — letters
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. race — the arms race
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. race — humankind
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. wax — to grow
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. capital — money
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. spell — magic
  24. chip — to eat

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