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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. clip — for paper
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. object — a thing
  5. wax — to grow
  6. cue — a signal
  7. cue — for pool
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. band — a music group
  11. object — to protest
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. can — a tin
  14. cue — a hint
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. object — an aim
  17. race — the arms race
  18. clip — a video
  19. clip — to cut
  20. can — a tin
  21. race — a contest
  22. band — a ring
  23. race — humankind
  24. can — to be able to

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