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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 120 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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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: hand · wound · wake · cue · wax · fork · stand · fall

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. fall — the season
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. wax — to grow
  6. cue — a signal
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. hand — in cards
  11. cue — a hint
  12. wake — a trail
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. wound — an injury
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. fork — in a road
  17. fall — to drop
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. cue — for pool
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. stand — to bear
  23. fall — to drop
  24. hand — help

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