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

Word bank: wave · mark · bass · root · kid · straw · cell · wax

  1. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. bass — low music
  4. kid — child
  5. mark — a trace
  6. root — of a plant
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. kid — to tease
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. cell — in biology
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. root — the cause
  17. root — of a word
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. cell — a phone
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. bass — the fish
  24. wax — to grow

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