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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. march — the month
  3. clip — to cut
  4. track — a song
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. pass — a permit
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. march — the month
  9. kid — to tease
  10. wax — to grow
  11. clip — a video
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. can — to be able to
  15. can — a tin
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. kid — child
  20. can — a tin
  21. track — to keep track
  22. track — a path
  23. clip — for paper
  24. march — music

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