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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. root — of a word
  5. staff — employees
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. clip — for paper
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. object — an aim
  12. clip — to cut
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. root — the cause
  17. staff — employees
  18. staff — a stick
  19. wax — to grow
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. root — of a plant
  23. object — to protest
  24. clip — a video

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