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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: row · lean · kid · wax · tube · rest · last · file

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  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. wax — to grow
  2. rest — what's left
  3. last — finally
  4. tube — the underground
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. lean — thin
  7. kid — to tease
  8. file — a line of people
  9. file — a document
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. last — final
  12. kid — child
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. file — a tool
  15. row — to paddle
  16. rest — a break
  17. lean — to bend
  18. last — to go on
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. rest — what's left
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. row — a line
  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