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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 120 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: tear · wax · squash · mug · scale · fork · straw · rash

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. scale — in music
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. squash — to crush
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. mug — to rob
  9. mug — a cup
  10. scale — size or range
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. tear — to rip
  13. tear — from crying
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. wax — to grow
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. tear — from crying
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. mug — a face
  22. rash — hasty
  23. squash — the sport
  24. fork — in a road

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