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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. bore — to tire
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. clip — for paper
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. kick — in football
  11. clip — to cut
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. clip — a video
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. band — a music group
  20. bore — to drill
  21. wax — to grow
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. band — a ring
  24. date — the fruit

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