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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 116 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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. fall — to drop
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. pop — to visit
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. clip — for paper
  10. ball — a dance
  11. pop — soda
  12. fall — to drop
  13. vault — a safe
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. fall — the season
  18. clip — to cut
  19. ball — a great time
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. clip — a video
  22. wax — to grow
  23. pop — music
  24. wind — moving air

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