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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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. suit — clothes
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. clip — for paper
  5. suit — to fit
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. spell — a short time
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. suit — in cards
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. spell — magic
  16. spell — letters
  17. game — a match
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. wax — to grow
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. clip — a video
  22. game — wild animals
  23. row — to paddle
  24. clip — to cut

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