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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. clip — for paper
  3. clip — to cut
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. bank — of a river
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. bank — for money
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. rash — a series
  12. last — finally
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. wax — to grow
  15. fork — in a road
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. bank — for money
  18. last — to go on
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. rash — hasty
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. clip — a video
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. dip — to sink

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