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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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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: chair · race · clip · hide · stem · bowl · wax · fine

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. wax — to grow
  4. chair — a leader
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. fine — high quality
  8. race — humankind
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. stem — to come from
  11. race — a contest
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. fine — all right
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. race — the arms race
  18. clip — to cut
  19. clip — for paper
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. clip — a video
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. chair — a professorship

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