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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: fork · wax · wind · coach · suit · file · firm · shower

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. shower — rain
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. shower — to wash
  5. file — a line of people
  6. suit — clothes
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. wax — to grow
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wind — moving air
  12. firm — decided
  13. firm — steady
  14. file — a tool
  15. fork — in a road
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. firm — a company
  19. suit — in cards
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. suit — to fit
  23. file — a document
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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