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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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Word bank
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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: pop · kick · clip · bore · land · date · can · wax

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. clip — for paper
  3. pop — to visit
  4. clip — to cut
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. land — a country
  9. date — the fruit
  10. pop — music
  11. can — to be able to
  12. bore — to tire
  13. can — a tin
  14. wax — to grow
  15. kick — in football
  16. land — to come down
  17. bore — to drill
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. clip — a video
  20. land — ground
  21. can — a tin
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. pop — soda
  24. bore — gave birth

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