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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: last · straw · wax · chair · deal · ground · trunk · snap

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. wax — to grow
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. last — finally
  7. last — final
  8. snap — to click
  9. ground — a position
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. deal — to handle
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. ground — the earth
  20. last — to go on
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. chair — a leader
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. deal — a big deal

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