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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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. clip — for paper
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. content — the amount
  5. content — happy
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. rock — a stone
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. wound — an injury
  14. tear — from crying
  15. clip — to cut
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. tear — to rip
  22. rock — music
  23. wax — to grow
  24. tear — from crying

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