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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: game · rash · stem · nail · fan · wax · last · tube

  1. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — in a tire
  2. game — a match
  3. tube — the underground
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. stem — to come from
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. rash — a series
  11. last — final
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. wax — to grow
  14. last — finally
  15. last — to go on
  16. rash — hasty
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. game — wild animals
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. tube — a container
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. wax — for sculpting

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