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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. mark — a grade
  3. cue — a hint
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. wax — to grow
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. clip — to cut
  8. cue — a signal
  9. march — music
  10. content — happy
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. clip — a video
  14. march — the month
  15. branch — a division
  16. mark — a trace
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. content — the amount
  21. cue — for pool
  22. march — the month
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. clip — for paper

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