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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. mug — to rob
  3. kid — to tease
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. season — in sport
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. mug — a cup
  8. file — a document
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. season — of the year
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. deal — to handle
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. file — a tool
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. kid — child
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. mug — a face
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. file — a line of people

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