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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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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. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. rest — a break
  3. sharp — clever
  4. clip — for paper
  5. clip — to cut
  6. last — finally
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. mate — a partner
  9. last — final
  10. mate — a friend
  11. last — to go on
  12. land — a country
  13. mate — to breed
  14. rest — what's left
  15. rest — what's left
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. land — ground
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. clip — a video
  22. land — to come down
  23. wax — to grow
  24. sharp — exactly

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