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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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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: pass · wound · perch · wind · kid · cabinet · craft · wax

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. craft — a skill
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. wax — to grow
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. pass — a permit
  12. kid — child
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. craft — boats
  15. wound — an injury
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. wound — an injury
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. perch — the fish
  23. kid — to tease
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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