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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: fan · wind · wax · ground · straw · chair · bear · swing

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. ground — the earth
  3. swing — to play on
  4. wind — moving air
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. swing — music
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. ground — crushed
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. swing — in golf
  17. bear — the animal
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. ground — a position
  21. chair — a leader
  22. bear — the animal
  23. wax — to grow
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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