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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. key — for a lock
  3. kid — child
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. can — to be able to
  7. can — a tin
  8. tube — the underground
  9. clip — a video
  10. clip — for paper
  11. bark — to shout
  12. key — in music
  13. wax — to grow
  14. can — a tin
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. clip — to cut
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. tube — a container
  19. key — the most important part
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. wax — in the ear

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