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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. track — a song
  3. clip — to cut
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. clip — a video
  6. race — humankind
  7. staff — employees
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. track — to keep track
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. race — the arms race
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. staff — a stick
  16. track — a path
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. race — a contest
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. wax — to grow
  21. staff — employees
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. clip — for paper

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