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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  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. clip — to cut
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. clip — a video
  4. bore — to tire
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. wax — to grow
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. land — to come down
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. bound — tied together
  15. land — ground
  16. bound — obliged
  17. snap — to click
  18. lie — to recline
  19. land — a country
  20. bound — certain
  21. chip — to eat
  22. chip — for betting
  23. bore — to drill
  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