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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
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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: plane · season · chest · wax · tear · wind · capital · bulb

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. wind — moving air
  3. plane — a tool
  4. wax — to grow
  5. tear — to rip
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. capital — money
  8. wind — moving air
  9. season — in sport
  10. chest — of your body
  11. season — of the year
  12. bulb — for light
  13. chest — a box
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. capital — a city
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. chest — of your body
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. tear — from crying
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. tear — from crying
  24. bulb — of a plant

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