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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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. last — finally
  3. wound — an injury
  4. bore — to tire
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. last — to go on
  8. last — final
  9. cap — of ice
  10. wax — to grow
  11. clip — a video
  12. object — to protest
  13. cap — a lid
  14. clip — to cut
  15. object — a thing
  16. cap — a hat
  17. object — an aim
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. bore — to drill
  21. clip — for paper
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. fan — a supporter

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