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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: race · wake · nail · wax · fine · season · lean · chip

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. fine — all right
  3. lean — to bend
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. race — humankind
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. fine — high quality
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. chip — for betting
  10. wake — a trail
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. chip — to eat
  15. wax — to grow
  16. race — a contest
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. season — of the year
  20. season — in sport
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. race — the arms race

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