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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wax · game · straw · rock · present · bear · clip · squash

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. squash — the sport
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. rock — music
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. bear — the animal
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. squash — to crush
  10. present — the time now
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. game — a match
  14. clip — to cut
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. present — a gift
  17. clip — a video
  18. clip — for paper
  19. rock — a stone
  20. present — there
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. wax — to grow
  23. bear — the animal
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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