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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: snap · kid · bulb · mark · season · stand · hand · wax

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. season — of the year
  3. hand — help
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. wax — to grow
  6. snap — to click
  7. bulb — for light
  8. kid — child
  9. mark — a grade
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. hand — in cards
  14. mark — a trace
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. kid — to tease
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. bulb — for light
  24. season — in sport

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