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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. rock — music
  3. game — a match
  4. game — wild animals
  5. clip — a video
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. clip — for paper
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. clip — to cut
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. content — happy
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. wax — to grow
  18. content — the amount
  19. pound — a weight
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. rock — a stone
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. ruler — for measuring

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