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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: cap · wax · rush · tube · straw · swing · date · deal

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. swing — in golf
  3. cap — a hat
  4. wax — to grow
  5. date — the fruit
  6. rush — hurry
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. swing — music
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. tube — a container
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. cap — of ice
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. deal — to handle
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. swing — to play on
  20. tube — the underground
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. cap — a lid

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