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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: wound · wax · bear · roll · hand · race · snap · board

  1. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. roll — a list
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. snap — to click
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. race — a contest
  8. roll — a cake
  9. wax — to grow
  10. wound — an injury
  11. hand — help
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. race — the arms race
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. wound — an injury
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. board — a committee
  19. race — humankind
  20. hand — in cards
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bear — the animal

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