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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: bound · wax · stand · spring · last · cell · file · cue

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. stand — to bear
  3. file — a tool
  4. file — a document
  5. wax — to grow
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. cue — for pool
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. bound — certain
  10. bound — tied together
  11. spring — a coil
  12. cue — a signal
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. file — a line of people
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. bound — obliged
  18. last — final
  19. last — to go on
  20. cell — in biology
  21. last — finally
  22. spring — the season
  23. spring — of water
  24. cue — a hint

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