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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 120 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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. bore — to drill
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. net — for catching
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. net — after costs
  8. wax — to grow
  9. clip — to cut
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. kick — in football
  12. net — in sport
  13. clip — for paper
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. clip — a video
  17. bore — to tire
  18. bore — gave birth

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