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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 · fall · capital · arm · coach · chip · face · squash

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. face — to confront
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. fall — to drop
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. face — to point toward
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. fall — the season
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. squash — the sport
  12. squash — to crush
  13. capital — money
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. face — part of the head
  16. chip — for betting
  17. wax — to grow
  18. chip — to eat
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. fall — to drop
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. capital — a city
  24. chip — in a computer

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