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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. sharp — clever
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. wax — to grow
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. date — the fruit
  16. capital — money
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. capital — a city

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