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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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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: rash · roll · mouse · squash · wound · last · wax · degree

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. last — to go on
  3. degree — temperature
  4. roll — a cake
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. degree — from a university
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. squash — the sport
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. last — final
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. wound — an injury
  14. roll — a list
  15. last — finally
  16. rash — a series
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. squash — to crush
  19. degree — an amount
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. wound — an injury
  22. rash — hasty
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. mouse — for a computer

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