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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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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: wax · chair · lean · bulb · kid · fan · spring · season

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. bulb — for light
  3. kid — to tease
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. spring — a coil
  8. spring — of water
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. lean — thin
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. lean — to bend
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. season — in sport
  18. wax — to grow
  19. spring — the season
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. season — of the year
  22. bulb — for light
  23. chair — a leader
  24. kid — child

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