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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. wound — an injury
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. clip — for paper
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. bore — to drill
  13. bat — the animal
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. tube — the underground
  16. wax — to grow
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. wound — an injury
  19. clip — a video
  20. tube — a container
  21. chair — a leader
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bore — to tire
  24. deal — to handle

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