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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: spell · wave · wax · cabinet · bat · sharp · hand · file

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. hand — help
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. file — a tool
  8. bat — the animal
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. sharp — clever
  11. spell — magic
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. hand — in cards
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. file — a document
  19. spell — letters
  20. spell — a short time
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. file — a line of people
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. wax — to grow

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