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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: game · wax · stand · bear · straw · rest · capital · pound

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. rest — what's left
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. bear — the animal
  5. stand — to bear
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. game — a match
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. bear — the animal
  14. game — wild animals
  15. capital — money
  16. pound — a weight
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. rest — a break
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. capital — a city
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. wax — to grow

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