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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 120 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. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. bore — to drill
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. face — part of the head
  7. bore — to tire
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. swing — to play on
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. swing — in golf
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. face — to confront
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. hand — help
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. face — to point toward
  21. hand — in cards
  22. snap — to click
  23. chair — a leader
  24. swing — music

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