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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: squash · stand · wax · pass · object · bear · bark · chest

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. chest — of your body
  4. squash — to crush
  5. pass — a permit
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. object — an aim
  8. object — a thing
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. squash — the sport
  11. chest — of your body
  12. wax — to grow
  13. bear — the animal
  14. bark — to shout
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. object — to protest
  17. bear — the animal
  18. stand — to bear
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. chest — a box
  24. bear — to put up with

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