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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
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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: cell · land · wax · chip · squash · rash · ground · firm

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. land — a country
  3. squash — the sport
  4. wax — to grow
  5. squash — to crush
  6. firm — decided
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. chip — for betting
  9. firm — a company
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. ground — a position
  12. cell — a phone
  13. chip — to eat
  14. cell — in biology
  15. rash — a series
  16. rash — hasty
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. land — ground
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. ground — the earth
  21. land — to come down
  22. firm — steady
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. ground — crushed

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