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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: kid · key · bound · saw · snap · wax · wind · charge

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. kid — child
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. kid — to tease
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. bound — tied together
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. bound — certain
  9. wind — moving air
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. wax — to grow
  12. charge — a price
  13. key — in music
  14. key — for a lock
  15. charge — in control
  16. key — the most important part
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. snap — to click
  19. bound — obliged
  20. charge — electricity
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. saw — the tool
  23. wind — moving air
  24. saw — the tool

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