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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. firm — a company
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. saw — the tool
  8. saw — the tool
  9. present — there
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. cold — not warm
  14. firm — decided
  15. wax — to grow
  16. tube — a container
  17. tube — the underground
  18. cold — an illness
  19. present — the time now
  20. firm — steady
  21. stem — to come from
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. calf — of the leg

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