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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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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. pound — a weight
  3. pass — a permit
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. wax — to grow
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. clip — to cut
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. clip — a video
  11. staff — employees
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. clip — for paper
  14. capital — a city
  15. staff — employees
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. capital — money
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. branch — a division
  22. bulb — for light
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. bulb — for light

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