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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: wind · firm · content · bulb · chip · stock · saw · wax

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. saw — the tool
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. stock — shares
  5. firm — a company
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. wax — to grow
  9. stock — goods
  10. saw — the tool
  11. chip — for betting
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wind — moving air
  15. content — happy
  16. firm — steady
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. bulb — for light
  19. firm — decided
  20. content — the amount
  21. chip — to eat
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. bulb — for light
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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