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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: chair · wax · lash · plane · spring · mine · saw · squash

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. saw — the tool
  3. plane — a tool
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. spring — of water
  7. squash — the sport
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. chair — a leader
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. saw — the tool
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. squash — to crush
  15. spring — a coil
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. wax — to grow
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. spring — the season
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. mine — for digging

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