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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 120 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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  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. bay — a horse colour
  2. wax — to grow
  3. clip — to cut
  4. bound — obliged
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. board — a committee
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. bound — certain
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. bound — tied together
  14. board — to get on
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. chair — a leader
  17. stem — to come from
  18. clip — for paper
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. arm — a part of something
  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