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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 116 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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  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. clip — for paper
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. fall — to drop
  4. clip — a video
  5. wax — to grow
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. fall — to drop
  8. root — of a word
  9. fine — all right
  10. saw — the tool
  11. tube — the underground
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. fine — high quality
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. tube — a container
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. root — of a plant
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. saw — the tool
  21. root — the cause
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. fall — the season
  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