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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. bound — certain
  3. clip — for paper
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. clip — a video
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. spring — of water
  8. toast — bread
  9. band — a music group
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. band — a ring
  12. bound — obliged
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. fork — in a road
  18. spring — the season
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. bound — tied together
  21. spring — a coil
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. wax — to grow
  24. fork — to eat with

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