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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 120 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: stand · squash · wind · bulb · last · wax · snap · net

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. last — final
  3. wind — moving air
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. stand — to bear
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. last — finally
  9. net — in sport
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. squash — to crush
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. last — to go on
  14. squash — the sport
  15. snap — to click
  16. wax — to grow
  17. bulb — for light
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. net — after costs
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. net — for catching
  23. bulb — for light
  24. squash — the vegetable

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