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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. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. land — ground
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. bore — to drill
  5. fall — to drop
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. land — a country
  9. fall — the season
  10. field — for sport
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. bore — to tire
  13. field — a subject
  14. land — to come down
  15. fall — to drop
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. field — farmland

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