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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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468
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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. clip — for paper
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. kid — to tease
  6. wax — to grow
  7. clip — a video
  8. clip — to cut
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. lie — to recline
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. kid — child
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. wound — an injury
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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