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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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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: roll · squash · fan · foot · wax · season · game · wind

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. season — of the year
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. roll — a cake
  7. foot — a measure
  8. wind — moving air
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. season — in sport
  11. game — wild animals
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. wax — to grow
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. squash — to crush
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. roll — a list
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. squash — the sport
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. fan — a supporter

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