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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. cold — an illness
  3. dip — to sink
  4. drill — the tool
  5. stock — shares
  6. cold — not warm
  7. club — a group
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. club — for dancing
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. drill — army training
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. wax — to grow
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. club — for golf
  21. drill — a practice
  22. kick — in football
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. stock — goods

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