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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: row · present · file · track · tear · bass · wax · mug

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. present — a gift
  3. mug — a face
  4. bass — low music
  5. file — a tool
  6. track — to keep track
  7. present — there
  8. track — a song
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. mug — to rob
  11. mug — a cup
  12. bass — the fish
  13. row — to paddle
  14. present — the time now
  15. file — a document
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — from crying
  19. file — a line of people
  20. track — a path
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. wax — to grow
  23. tear — to rip
  24. row — a line

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