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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 room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. clip — a video
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. face — to confront
  6. current — electric
  7. kid — to tease
  8. face — part of the head
  9. current — of water
  10. clip — to cut
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. clip — for paper
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. current — happening now
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. face — to point toward
  19. wax — to grow
  20. kid — child
  21. bark — to shout
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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