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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 120 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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  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. mouse — the animal
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. clip — to cut
  4. board — to get on
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. clip — a video
  7. content — the amount
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. wound — an injury
  10. degree — an amount
  11. degree — from a university
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. board — a committee
  15. key — for a lock
  16. content — happy
  17. wax — to grow
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. key — in music
  20. degree — temperature
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. key — the most important part
  23. wound — an injury
  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