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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: clip · bound · ball · squash · wax · scale · craft · wake

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. wax — to grow
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. bound — tied together
  5. ball — a dance
  6. clip — to cut
  7. scale — size or range
  8. craft — boats
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. wake — a trail
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. ball — a great time
  14. craft — a skill
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. clip — a video
  18. scale — in music
  19. clip — for paper
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. bound — certain
  22. squash — the sport
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. bound — obliged

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