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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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. cell — in biology
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. court — for sport
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. tube — a container
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. wind — moving air
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. cell — a phone
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. file — a document
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. file — a line of people
  16. tube — the underground
  17. court — of a king
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. file — a tool
  20. wax — to grow
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. court — of law
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. wind — to turn a key

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