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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: cap · wind · nail · coach · mark · wound · wax · rush

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. wind — moving air
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. rush — hurry
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. wax — to grow
  10. cap — of ice
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. mark — a grade
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. wind — moving air
  16. cap — a lid
  17. cap — a hat
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. wound — an injury
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. wound — an injury
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. mark — a trace

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