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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. bass — the fish
  3. clip — for paper
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. wax — to grow
  7. clip — a video
  8. bulb — for light
  9. ground — the earth
  10. bass — low music
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. ground — crushed
  16. ground — a position
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. branch — a division
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. bulb — for light
  24. calf — a young animal

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