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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. rest — a break
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. sharp — clever
  6. rest — what's left
  7. wind — moving air
  8. rash — hasty
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. clip — to cut
  11. clip — for paper
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. wind — moving air
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. rest — what's left
  16. branch — a division
  17. rash — a series
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. clip — a video
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. wax — to grow

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