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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 · land · bulb · rash · sharp · nail · bound · wound

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. bulb — for light
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. bound — certain
  6. land — to come down
  7. bound — tied together
  8. bound — obliged
  9. wound — an injury
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. land — a country
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. wound — an injury
  17. sharp — clever
  18. rash — a series
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. wax — to grow
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. rash — hasty
  23. bulb — for light
  24. sharp — with an edge

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