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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: bank · plane · clip · sharp · wax · object · rash · kid

  1. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. wax — to grow
  3. clip — for paper
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. plane — a tool
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. rash — a series
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. kid — child
  10. sharp — clever
  11. bank — for money
  12. clip — to cut
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. object — to protest
  15. clip — a video
  16. object — an aim
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. bank — for money
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. kid — to tease
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. rash — hasty
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. object — a thing

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