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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. suit — in cards
  6. hand — in cards
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. deal — to handle
  9. hand — help
  10. suit — clothes
  11. cold — not warm
  12. cold — an illness
  13. chip — for betting
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. suit — to fit
  17. chip — to eat
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. wax — to grow
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. wave — of the sea

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