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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: bear · squash · wax · coach · cue · craft · bay · chest

  1. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — boats
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. chest — of your body
  4. bear — the animal
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. squash — to crush
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. cue — a signal
  11. cue — a hint
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. craft — a skill
  15. bear — the animal
  16. squash — the sport
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. cue — for pool
  19. chest — of your body
  20. wax — to grow
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. chest — a box
  24. squash — the vegetable

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