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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. deal — to handle
  3. last — finally
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. last — final
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. last — to go on
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. bulb — for light
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. swing — music
  12. clip — a video
  13. wax — to grow
  14. lean — thin
  15. bulb — for light
  16. clip — for paper
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. lean — to bend
  20. swing — in golf
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. clip — to cut
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. bulb — of a plant

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