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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: hand · pitcher · squash · track · game · foot · bore · wax

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. game — wild animals
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. hand — help
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. track — to keep track
  9. game — a match
  10. bore — to tire
  11. foot — a measure
  12. wax — to grow
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. squash — to crush
  18. bore — to drill
  19. track — a path
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. hand — in cards
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. track — a song

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