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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 120 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: clip · sharp · lash · wax · board · bark · squash · game

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. clip — to cut
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. sharp — clever
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. squash — to crush
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. bark — to shout
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. game — wild animals
  12. squash — the sport
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. board — a committee
  15. wax — to grow
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. game — a match
  19. clip — for paper
  20. board — to get on
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. clip — a video

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