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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: fan · wax · wound · foot · kid · cabinet · wave · ground

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. ground — crushed
  3. ground — the earth
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. wax — to grow
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. ground — a position
  11. wound — an injury
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. kid — child
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. wound — an injury
  23. kid — to tease
  24. foot — the bottom

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