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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: arm · clip · hide · game · leaves · spring · last · wax

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. spring — a coil
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. clip — a video
  5. clip — for paper
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. wax — to grow
  8. game — wild animals
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. clip — to cut
  11. last — finally
  12. spring — of water
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. game — a match
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. spring — the season
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. last — to go on
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. last — final

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