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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 · mine · capital · prune · racket · wave · squash · straw

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. prune — to trim
  7. wax — to grow
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. squash — the sport
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. capital — money
  14. mine — for digging
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. prune — to trim
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. capital — a city
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. squash — to crush
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. wave — 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