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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: shower · sharp · stem · cabinet · wake · wax · last · object

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. last — finally
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. object — a thing
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. shower — rain
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. sharp — clever
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. last — final
  14. wax — to grow
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. shower — to wash
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. last — to go on
  21. stem — to come from
  22. object — an aim
  23. wake — a trail
  24. object — to protest

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