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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
468
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: charge · sharp · spring · cell · land · dip · wax · bound

  1. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. charge — in control
  3. land — to come down
  4. cell — a phone
  5. spring — the season
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. bound — tied together
  8. wax — to grow
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. spring — a coil
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. sharp — clever
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. land — ground
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. bound — obliged
  17. charge — a price
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. charge — electricity
  20. land — a country
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. spring — of water
  23. cell — in biology
  24. bound — certain

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