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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  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. lean — to bend
  2. hand — help
  3. hand — in cards
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. race — the arms race
  6. saw — the tool
  7. race — a contest
  8. wax — to grow
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. club — for golf
  11. club — a group
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. mug — a cup
  14. club — for dancing
  15. race — humankind
  16. squash — to crush
  17. squash — the sport
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. mug — a face
  21. lean — thin
  22. mug — to rob
  23. saw — the tool
  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