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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 116 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: wound · squash · wax · bound · net · lash · race · fine

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. squash — the sport
  3. net — in sport
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. race — a contest
  6. bound — obliged
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. race — humankind
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. race — the arms race
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. net — for catching
  15. net — after costs
  16. fine — all right
  17. bound — certain
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. wound — an injury
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. bound — tied together
  23. squash — to crush
  24. wax — to grow

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