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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: staff · chest · wind · saw · root · charge · wax · drill

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. charge — electricity
  4. root — the cause
  5. staff — a stick
  6. wind — moving air
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. drill — a practice
  9. saw — the tool
  10. staff — employees
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. drill — the tool
  13. root — of a word
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. drill — army training
  17. charge — in control
  18. staff — employees
  19. chest — a box
  20. root — of a plant
  21. wax — to grow
  22. chest — of your body
  23. charge — a price
  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