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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. rule — government
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. fork — in a road
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. rule — a law
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. cold — not warm
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. cold — an illness
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. wind — moving air
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wax — to grow
  23. scale — size or range
  24. scale — in 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