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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. rule — government
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. rule — a law
  5. hand — help
  6. clip — for paper
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. last — finally
  9. craft — boats
  10. swing — music
  11. last — final
  12. hand — in cards
  13. last — to go on
  14. clip — a video
  15. clip — to cut
  16. swing — to play on
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. wax — to grow
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. swing — in golf
  22. craft — a skill
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. arm — part of the body

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