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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: wax · bound · wind · game · spring · content · nail · fall

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. bound — obliged
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. wind — moving air
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. wind — moving air
  10. bound — tied together
  11. content — the amount
  12. bound — certain
  13. wax — to grow
  14. spring — the season
  15. game — wild animals
  16. spring — a coil
  17. spring — of water
  18. content — happy
  19. game — a match
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. fall — to drop
  23. fall — to drop
  24. content — videos and posts

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