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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: cabinet · wax · chest · bear · scale · foot · ground · wind

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. scale — size or range
  3. wind — moving air
  4. ground — a position
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. chest — of your body
  7. ground — the earth
  8. wind — moving air
  9. chest — of your body
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. bear — the animal
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. wax — to grow
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. chest — a box
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. foot — a measure
  23. scale — in music
  24. bear — the animal

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