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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: bore · current · wax · file · straw · scale · prune · hand

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. current — electric
  3. file — a line of people
  4. file — a document
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. hand — in cards
  8. current — of water
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. file — a tool
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. scale — in music
  14. prune — to trim
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. scale — size or range
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. hand — help
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. current — happening now
  22. prune — to trim
  23. bore — to tire
  24. bore — to drill

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