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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. present — a gift
  3. last — final
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. ground — a position
  6. snap — to click
  7. clip — to cut
  8. clip — for paper
  9. last — to go on
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. clip — a video
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. spell — a short time
  16. spell — magic
  17. ground — crushed
  18. spell — letters
  19. wax — to grow
  20. present — there
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. last — finally
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. ground — the earth

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