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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. net — in sport
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. net — after costs
  6. wax — to grow
  7. clip — for paper
  8. clip — a video
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. squash — the sport
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. squash — to crush
  16. net — for catching
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. rush — hurry
  24. clip — to cut

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