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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 · fine · cabinet · pit · file · stem · mate · cold

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. file — a tool
  3. pit — in a race
  4. cold — not warm
  5. mate — a friend
  6. stem — to come from
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. pit — a hole
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. mate — a partner
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. mate — to breed
  16. fine — high quality
  17. cold — an illness
  18. file — a document
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. file — a line of people
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. fine — all right
  24. wax — to grow

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