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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 124 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: wake · file · mate · kid · saw · cap · ground · wax

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. file — a line of people
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. kid — child
  6. saw — the tool
  7. cap — a lid
  8. cap — of ice
  9. file — a document
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. cap — a hat
  12. kid — to tease
  13. mate — a friend
  14. ground — crushed
  15. mate — a partner
  16. wax — to grow
  17. mate — to breed
  18. wake — a trail
  19. file — a tool
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. ground — a position
  22. ground — the earth
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. wax — for sculpting

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