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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 seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. cap — a lid
  4. rule — a law
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. wind — moving air
  9. squash — the sport
  10. squash — to crush
  11. cap — a hat
  12. net — for catching
  13. clip — a video
  14. wind — moving air
  15. net — after costs
  16. rule — government
  17. charge — electricity
  18. cap — of ice
  19. wax — to grow
  20. clip — for paper
  21. charge — in control
  22. charge — a price
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. net — in sport

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