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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. board — to get on
  3. board — a committee
  4. firm — steady
  5. clip — for paper
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. bound — tied together
  8. firm — decided
  9. bound — certain
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. firm — a company
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. tear — from crying
  16. club — for dancing
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — to rip
  19. clip — a video
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. clip — to cut
  22. club — for golf
  23. bound — obliged
  24. club — a group

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