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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  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. mine — belonging to me
  2. clip — a video
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. game — a match
  5. march — the month
  6. march — music
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. march — the month
  10. firm — steady
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. mine — for digging
  13. firm — a company
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. firm — decided
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. clip — to cut
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. game — wild animals
  23. wax — to grow
  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