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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. chair — a leader
  3. clip — a video
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. wax — to grow
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. kick — in football
  9. season — in sport
  10. rock — music
  11. pound — a weight
  12. mug — to rob
  13. season — of the year
  14. mug — a cup
  15. rock — a stone
  16. mug — a face
  17. clip — to cut
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. season — to add flavour

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