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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: wind · snap · wax · chip · bulb · lean · perch · date

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. bulb — for light
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wax — to grow
  7. lean — thin
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. snap — to click
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. date — the fruit
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. lean — to bend
  16. perch — the fish
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. bulb — for light
  20. chip — to eat
  21. chip — for betting
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. wind — moving air
  24. perch — for a bird

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