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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: bark · tube · mate · current · wax · straw · lean · tear

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. mate — a friend
  3. lean — thin
  4. tear — to rip
  5. tube — a container
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. current — electric
  8. mate — a partner
  9. tube — the underground
  10. tear — from crying
  11. current — happening now
  12. mate — to breed
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. current — of water
  15. lean — to bend
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. bark — to shout
  24. tear — from crying

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