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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. mark — a trace
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. clip — to cut
  5. cue — for pool
  6. mark — a grade
  7. clip — a video
  8. wax — to grow
  9. cue — a hint
  10. ball — a great time
  11. cue — a signal
  12. capital — money
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. spring — of water
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. spring — a coil
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. capital — a city
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. clip — for paper
  24. spring — the season

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