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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: charge · bound · wax · wound · cell · straw · drill · spring

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. drill — army training
  4. wound — an injury
  5. charge — a price
  6. cell — in biology
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. spring — a coil
  9. spring — the season
  10. drill — a practice
  11. bound — obliged
  12. drill — the tool
  13. charge — in control
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wax — to grow
  16. spring — of water
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. bound — tied together
  19. cell — a phone
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. charge — electricity
  24. bound — certain

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