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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 · saw · stem · mate · bound · kid · field · rule

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. bound — certain
  4. field — farmland
  5. mate — a partner
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. saw — the tool
  8. mate — a friend
  9. field — for sport
  10. mate — to breed
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. kid — child
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. stem — to come from
  16. rule — government
  17. bound — tied together
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. bound — obliged
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. rule — a law
  22. field — a subject
  23. kid — to tease
  24. wax — to grow

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