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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. mark — a trace
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. mark — a grade
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. fall — to drop
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. cell — in biology
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. bore — to drill
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. wax — to grow
  17. bore — to tire
  18. fall — the season
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. fall — to drop
  22. cell — a phone
  23. content — the amount
  24. mark — to pay attention

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