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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · lie · tube · squash · rush · degree · rest · perch

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. rest — a break
  3. tube — the underground
  4. degree — temperature
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. wax — to grow
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. degree — from a university
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. squash — to crush
  13. rush — hurry
  14. squash — the sport
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. degree — an amount
  18. lie — to recline
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. rest — what's left
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. rest — what's left
  24. tube — a container

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