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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. wax — to grow
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. bulb — for light
  8. clip — a video
  9. game — wild animals
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. bulb — for light
  12. wind — moving air
  13. game — a match
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. wind — moving air
  16. clip — to cut
  17. clip — for paper
  18. pass — a permit

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