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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 · rule · rush · wax · present · wake · game · spell

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. spell — letters
  3. wax — to grow
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. spell — a short time
  8. wake — a trail
  9. present — the time now
  10. game — wild animals
  11. present — there
  12. rule — a law
  13. file — a line of people
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. file — a tool
  18. file — a document
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. rush — hurry
  21. game — a match
  22. spell — magic
  23. rule — government
  24. present — a gift

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