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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.

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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: straw · ground · lean · stick · arm · chip · wax · tear

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. ground — the earth
  5. lean — to bend
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. tear — from crying
  8. tear — to rip
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. chip — to eat
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. wax — to grow
  19. ground — crushed
  20. tear — from crying
  21. chip — for betting
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. ground — a position

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