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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 120 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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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: wind · rest · coach · charge · wax · ball · perch · kid

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. wind — moving air
  3. perch — the fish
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. kid — child
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. ball — a dance
  10. ball — a great time
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. rest — what's left
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. rest — what's left
  15. charge — a price
  16. rest — a break
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. charge — in control
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. kid — to tease
  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