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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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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: wax · bulb · board · date · kid · present · cell · chest

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. board — to get on
  3. kid — to tease
  4. bulb — for light
  5. cell — in biology
  6. bulb — for light
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. present — there
  9. cell — a phone
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. kid — child
  13. present — the time now
  14. date — the fruit
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. chest — a box
  17. present — a gift
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. chest — of your body
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. wax — to grow
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. chest — of your body
  24. board — a committee

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