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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: perch · rule · bass · tube · fan · content · wax · file

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. perch — the fish
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. tube — the underground
  7. content — happy
  8. content — the amount
  9. tube — a container
  10. file — a document
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. bass — low music
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. rule — a law
  16. wax — to grow
  17. file — a line of people
  18. file — a tool
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. bass — the fish
  23. rule — government
  24. perch — for a bird

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