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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: bore · wax · mug · squash · toast · board · lie · field

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. mug — a face
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. board — a committee
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. bore — to tire
  8. lie — to recline
  9. toast — bread
  10. mug — to rob
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. mug — a cup
  16. squash — to crush
  17. field — farmland
  18. field — a subject
  19. squash — the sport
  20. bore — to drill
  21. field — for sport
  22. board — to get on
  23. wax — for sculpting
  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