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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: arm · pop · band · wax · bear · tube · spring · saw

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. wax — to grow
  3. pop — music
  4. saw — the tool
  5. pop — to visit
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. tube — a container
  9. saw — the tool
  10. spring — the season
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. bear — the animal
  13. spring — of water
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. band — a music group
  17. band — a ring
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. spring — a coil
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. bear — the animal
  24. tube — the underground

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