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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. clip — a video
  3. chest — of your body
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. club — for golf
  6. game — wild animals
  7. wax — to grow
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. clip — to cut
  10. charge — a price
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. game — a match
  13. club — a group
  14. charge — in control
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. staff — employees
  17. charge — electricity
  18. staff — employees
  19. staff — a stick
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. chest — a box
  22. club — for dancing
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. chest — of your body

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