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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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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: wind · calf · clip · press · swing · plane · chip · wax

  1. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. clip — a video
  3. clip — for paper
  4. wax — to grow
  5. chip — for betting
  6. clip — to cut
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. press — a publisher
  9. plane — a tool
  10. press — newspapers
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. wind — moving air
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. press — to push
  16. swing — in golf
  17. swing — music
  18. swing — to play on
  19. chip — to eat
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. chip — in a computer

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