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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: rush · straw · fan · wax · can · season · cold · roll

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. roll — a cake
  6. cold — not warm
  7. wax — to grow
  8. can — to be able to
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. can — a tin
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. can — a tin
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. season — in sport
  18. rush — hurry
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. season — of the year
  21. cold — an illness
  22. roll — a list
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. season — to add flavour

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