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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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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: wax · tube · mark · rush · chest · staff · cold · mouse

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. rush — hurry
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. mark — a trace
  5. chest — of your body
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. staff — a stick
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. mark — a grade
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. chest — of your body
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. cold — not warm
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. tube — a container
  19. staff — employees
  20. staff — employees
  21. tube — the underground
  22. wax — to grow
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. chest — a box

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