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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 124 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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. net — for catching
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. net — after costs
  6. clip — to cut
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. rest — what's left
  10. tear — from crying
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. clip — a video
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. tear — to rip
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. net — in sport
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. tear — from crying
  20. rest — a break
  21. rest — what's left
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. wax — to grow
  24. wake — a trail

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