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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: file · race · ground · wax · lean · content · cue · wind

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. cue — a hint
  3. file — a document
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. race — a contest
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. race — humankind
  8. ground — the earth
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. file — a tool
  11. content — happy
  12. ground — a position
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. ground — crushed
  15. race — the arms race
  16. lean — to bend
  17. wax — to grow
  18. cue — for pool
  19. wind — moving air
  20. content — the amount
  21. cue — a signal
  22. file — a line of people
  23. wind — moving air
  24. lean — thin

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