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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: wax · bay · straw · mine · chip · can · foot · capital

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. can — a tin
  3. can — to be able to
  4. foot — a measure
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. chip — for betting
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. chip — to eat
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. wax — to grow
  13. can — a tin
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. capital — a city
  17. mine — for digging
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. capital — money
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. mine — an explosive

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