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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 · can · jam · scale · clip · fan · chest · nail

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. clip — to cut
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. chest — of your body
  10. chest — a box
  11. can — a tin
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. scale — size or range
  14. clip — for paper
  15. wax — to grow
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. can — to be able to
  21. scale — in music
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. chest — of your body
  24. clip — a video

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