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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: clip · wax · kick · bay · rule · tear · shower · wound

  1. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. tear — from crying
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. clip — to cut
  5. clip — a video
  6. shower — to wash
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. kick — in football
  10. clip — for paper
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. shower — rain
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. wound — an injury
  16. rule — government
  17. wax — to grow
  18. tear — from crying
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. tear — to rip
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. wound — an injury
  24. rule — a law

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