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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. band — a ring
  5. clip — a video
  6. can — a tin
  7. chip — to eat
  8. chip — for betting
  9. ground — a position
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. clip — for paper
  13. can — to be able to
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. clip — to cut
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. ground — crushed
  20. band — a music group
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. can — a tin
  23. ground — the earth
  24. wave — of the sea

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