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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: stick · club · fan · cold · lean · cue · row · wax

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. cold — not warm
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. row — to paddle
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. cue — for pool
  9. cold — an illness
  10. lean — thin
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. cue — a hint
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. club — for golf
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. cue — a signal
  17. club — a group
  18. lean — to bend
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. row — a line
  21. wax — to grow
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. club — for dancing

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