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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
468
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: charge · wind · clip · dip · wax · prune · ball · mine

  1. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. wind — moving air
  4. charge — a price
  5. mine — for digging
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. charge — electricity
  8. clip — a video
  9. ball — a great time
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. charge — in control
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. ball — a dance
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. wax — to grow
  16. wind — moving air
  17. clip — to cut
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. prune — to trim
  21. prune — to trim
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. clip — for paper
  24. wax — in the ear

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