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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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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: swing · chest · saw · lash · wax · rock · bat · deal

  1. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. saw — the tool
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. saw — the tool
  5. chest — a box
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. rock — a stone
  9. rock — music
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. swing — to play on
  13. swing — music
  14. wax — to grow
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. swing — in golf
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. chest — of your body
  20. bat — the animal
  21. chest — of your body
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. wax — in the ear

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