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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. wind — moving air
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. clip — to cut
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. clip — for paper
  10. ball — a great time
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. bore — to tire
  13. bore — to drill
  14. bank — for money
  15. ball — a dance
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. clip — a video
  18. bank — of a river
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wax — to grow
  21. bank — for money
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. wind — to turn a key

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