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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
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: wake · wax · squash · cold · game · fine · row · foot

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. game — a match
  4. cold — not warm
  5. wake — a trail
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. game — wild animals
  11. foot — a measure
  12. fine — high quality
  13. cold — an illness
  14. fine — all right
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. row — to paddle
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. row — a line
  22. wax — to grow
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. squash — the sport

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