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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: file · game · kid · bear · last · bore · wax · fan

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. wax — to grow
  4. file — a tool
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. last — to go on
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. file — a line of people
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. bore — to drill
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. bore — to tire
  16. last — finally
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. kid — to tease
  19. kid — child
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. last — final
  22. game — wild animals
  23. file — a document
  24. bear — the animal

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