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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. bound — certain
  3. wax — to grow
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. bound — tied together
  6. march — the month
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. clip — to cut
  13. cue — a signal
  14. march — music
  15. cue — a hint
  16. clip — for paper
  17. stem — to come from
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. mug — a face
  20. mug — a cup
  21. clip — a video
  22. march — the month
  23. bound — obliged
  24. cue — for pool

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