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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 116 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's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. clip — a video
  3. clip — to cut
  4. staff — employees
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. rest — a break
  7. wax — to grow
  8. rest — what's left
  9. drill — army training
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. rest — what's left
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. drill — a practice
  18. clip — for paper
  19. staff — a stick
  20. snap — to click
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. drill — the tool
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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