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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: cabinet · saw · spring · arm · wax · foot · land · last

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  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. wax — in the ear
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. spring — of water
  5. land — to come down
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. land — a country
  8. last — final
  9. spring — the season
  10. foot — a measure
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. last — to go on
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. last — finally
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. saw — the tool
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. spring — a coil
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. land — ground
  22. wax — to grow
  23. cabinet — ministers
  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