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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. wax — to grow
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. clip — for paper
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. rest — what's left
  7. wound — an injury
  8. toast — bread
  9. clip — to cut
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. rest — a break
  17. wound — an injury
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. content — the amount
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. rest — what's left
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. clip — a video
  24. content — happy

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