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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: saw · ground · wax · cold · clip · chair · pitch · safe

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. ground — crushed
  8. clip — a video
  9. saw — the tool
  10. clip — to cut
  11. cold — an illness
  12. clip — for paper
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. saw — the tool
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. ground — a position
  18. ground — the earth
  19. chair — a leader
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. wax — to grow
  22. pitch — completely
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. cold — not warm

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