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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. fine — all right
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. clip — a video
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. tear — to rip
  8. tear — from crying
  9. staff — employees
  10. staff — a stick
  11. bass — the fish
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. bass — low music
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. cap — of ice
  16. fine — high quality
  17. clip — for paper
  18. wax — to grow
  19. cap — a hat
  20. staff — employees
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. cap — a lid
  23. clip — to cut
  24. bat — the animal

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