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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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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: mate · wax · bay · bear · pitcher · rush · rash · content

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. mate — a friend
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. wax — to grow
  7. bear — the animal
  8. rash — hasty
  9. rash — a series
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. rush — hurry
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. content — the amount
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. bear — the animal
  22. content — happy
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. mate — to breed

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