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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: saw · chip · wax · land · board · branch · lean · wind

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. wax — to grow
  3. branch — a division
  4. saw — the tool
  5. land — a country
  6. land — ground
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. saw — the tool
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. board — to get on
  12. board — a committee
  13. wind — moving air
  14. land — to come down
  15. lean — thin
  16. chip — to eat
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. wind — moving air
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. lean — to bend
  24. chip — for betting

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