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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. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. fine — high quality
  4. clip — a video
  5. ground — crushed
  6. ground — a position
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. clip — for paper
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. wax — to grow
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. fine — all right
  13. ground — the earth
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. content — the amount
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. rush — hurry
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. kick — in football
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. clip — to cut
  22. content — happy
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. wave — with your hand

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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