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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 116 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 · leaves · game · rash · shower · wind · board · mouse

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. wax — to grow
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. game — wild animals
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. wind — moving air
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. shower — rain
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. rash — a series
  16. board — a committee
  17. board — to get on
  18. game — a match
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. shower — to wash
  21. rash — hasty
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. wind — moving air

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