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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. wax — to grow
  5. hand — help
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. lie — to recline
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. season — of the year
  10. season — in sport
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. key — for a lock
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. key — in music
  18. clip — for paper
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. clip — a video
  22. hand — in cards
  23. foot — a measure
  24. key — the most important part

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