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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 120 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: rest · wax · degree · bay · race · firm · racket · straw

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wax — to grow
  4. rest — what's left
  5. race — a contest
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. firm — a company
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. degree — an amount
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. race — humankind
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. rest — what's left
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. rest — a break
  18. firm — decided
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. degree — from a university
  21. degree — temperature
  22. firm — steady
  23. race — the arms race
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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