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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 124 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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. wax — to grow
  3. clip — for paper
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. cold — not warm
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. chip — for betting
  10. clip — a video
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. rock — music
  13. cold — an illness
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. squash — the sport
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. squash — to crush
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. rock — a stone
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. clip — to cut
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. chip — to eat
  24. vault — a safe

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