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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: toast · spring · row · lie · wax · clip · ball · pitcher

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. clip — to cut
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. lie — to recline
  7. spring — the season
  8. toast — bread
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. clip — a video
  11. clip — for paper
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. spring — a coil
  15. wax — to grow
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. spring — of water
  19. row — a line
  20. ball — a dance
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. row — to paddle
  23. ball — a great time
  24. row — a quarrel

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