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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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. object — an aim
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. bore — to tire
  5. clip — a video
  6. rule — government
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. clip — to cut
  10. wax — to grow
  11. bore — to drill
  12. lean — thin
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. lean — to bend
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. rule — a law
  18. object — to protest
  19. clip — for paper
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. wind — moving air
  23. object — a thing
  24. racket — for tennis

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