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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. club — a group
  3. saw — the tool
  4. capital — a city
  5. capital — money
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. saw — the tool
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. craft — a skill
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. object — to protest
  12. club — for golf
  13. squash — to crush
  14. hand — in cards
  15. object — an aim
  16. object — a thing
  17. craft — boats
  18. hand — help
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. squash — the sport
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. club — for dancing

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