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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: kid · object · squash · pop · nail · dip · wax · cell

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. object — to protest
  3. kid — to tease
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. pop — soda
  6. object — an aim
  7. pop — music
  8. cell — a phone
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. object — a thing
  11. dip — to sink
  12. wax — to grow
  13. squash — to crush
  14. pop — to visit
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. kid — child
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. squash — the sport
  24. cell — in biology

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