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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 120 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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. clip — to cut
  3. clip — a video
  4. cell — a phone
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. last — final
  10. last — finally
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. wax — to grow
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. cell — in biology
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. wound — an injury
  18. clip — for paper
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. last — to go on
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. patient — a sick person

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