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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: rule · wind · kick · wound · game · wax · wave · can

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. rule — government
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. wound — an injury
  9. can — a tin
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — moving air
  13. kick — in football
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. can — to be able to
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. rule — a law
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. can — a tin
  21. game — a match
  22. wax — to grow
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. game — wild animals

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