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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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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: race · bear · temple · wax · fall · band · squash · chip

  1. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. squash — the sport
  6. bear — the animal
  7. band — a music group
  8. fall — the season
  9. wax — to grow
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. race — humankind
  12. race — the arms race
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. chip — to eat
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. band — a ring
  18. fall — to drop
  19. squash — to crush
  20. chip — for betting
  21. fall — to drop
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. bear — the animal
  24. race — a contest

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