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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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wax — to grow
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. hand — in cards
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. hand — help
  9. pound — a weight
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. ball — a dance
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. ball — a great time
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. coach — a trainer

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