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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: fan · chest · file · wax · nail · bass · cabinet · tube

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. bass — low music
  3. chest — a box
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. file — a document
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. tube — the underground
  12. file — a line of people
  13. wax — to grow
  14. chest — of your body
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. bass — the fish
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. file — a tool
  23. chest — of your body
  24. tube — a container

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