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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: jam · rest · clip · saw · land · net · wax · bulb

  1. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. clip — for paper
  3. saw — the tool
  4. wax — to grow
  5. rest — what's left
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. bulb — for light
  8. land — a country
  9. net — for catching
  10. net — in sport
  11. saw — the tool
  12. clip — to cut
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. rest — a break
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. land — ground
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. clip — a video
  20. land — to come down
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. net — after costs
  24. rest — what's left

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