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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: file · squash · wax · mark · wind · straw · cap · key

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. file — a line of people
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. squash — to crush
  8. key — for a lock
  9. wax — to grow
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. file — a tool
  13. mark — a grade
  14. file — a document
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. squash — the sport
  17. key — the most important part
  18. cap — of ice
  19. wind — moving air
  20. key — in music
  21. cap — a hat
  22. mark — a trace
  23. cap — a lid
  24. mark — to pay attention

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