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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 116 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 works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  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. saw — the tool
  2. lean — to bend
  3. capital — a city
  4. wax — to grow
  5. rest — what's left
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. clip — a video
  9. clip — for paper
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. rock — music
  13. clip — to cut
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. rest — what's left
  17. rock — a stone
  18. capital — money
  19. pitch — completely
  20. rest — a break
  21. lean — thin
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. saw — the tool
  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