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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: chest · bay · wax · snap · root · chair · fork · bulb

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chest — of your body
  4. wax — to grow
  5. fork — in a road
  6. chest — a box
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. chair — a leader
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. root — of a word
  19. root — the cause
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. bulb — for light
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. root — of a plant
  24. bulb — for light

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