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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: straw · rule · wind · racket · swing · wax · board · craft

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. swing — music
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. board — a committee
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. swing — to play on
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. rule — a law
  9. craft — a skill
  10. craft — boats
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. wind — moving air
  16. board — to get on
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. wind — moving air
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. rule — government
  23. swing — in golf
  24. racket — a loud noise

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