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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: bulb · tube · chest · hide · bay · fall · wax · clip

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. clip — a video
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. bulb — for light
  9. fall — to drop
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. chest — a box
  12. tube — the underground
  13. fall — the season
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. clip — for paper
  16. wax — to grow
  17. tube — a container
  18. chest — of your body
  19. chest — of your body
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. fall — to drop
  22. bulb — for light
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. clip — to cut

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