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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: land · wound · game · wax · snap · band · file · plane

  1. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. land — ground
  4. land — to come down
  5. file — a document
  6. plane — a tool
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. wax — to grow
  10. game — a match
  11. band — a ring
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. land — a country
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. file — a tool
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. file — a line of people
  20. game — wild animals
  21. band — a music group
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. wound — an injury
  24. snap — to click

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