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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: bear · wax · season · rush · tube · file · lean · cap

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. cap — a hat
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. lean — to bend
  6. bear — the animal
  7. rush — hurry
  8. file — a document
  9. file — a line of people
  10. lean — thin
  11. wax — to grow
  12. cap — a lid
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. file — a tool
  19. cap — of ice
  20. tube — a container
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. season — in sport
  23. tube — the underground
  24. wax — in the ear

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