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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: chest · tube · wax · rock · stand · shower · club · wind

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  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. wax — to grow
  2. stand — to bear
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. chest — a box
  6. rock — a stone
  7. chest — of your body
  8. wind — moving air
  9. tube — a container
  10. tube — the underground
  11. shower — to wash
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. chest — of your body
  14. rock — music
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. club — a group
  18. shower — rain
  19. wind — moving air
  20. club — for dancing
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. club — for golf
  23. wind — to turn a key
  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