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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: wax · tube · patient · cabinet · chest · march · date · firm

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. firm — steady
  6. firm — decided
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. firm — a company
  10. chest — of your body
  11. march — music
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. chest — of your body
  14. march — the month
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. march — the month
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. tube — a container
  19. wax — to grow
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. tube — the underground
  23. date — the fruit
  24. date — on the calendar

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