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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: march · hide · wake · clip · wax · spring · cabinet · pit

  1. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. spring — a coil
  4. march — music
  5. spring — the season
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. clip — for paper
  8. clip — a video
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. wax — to grow
  12. march — the month
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. clip — to cut
  15. spring — of water
  16. march — the month
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. pit — a hole
  21. pit — in a race
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. wake — a trail
  24. cabinet — ministers

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