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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. cue — a hint
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. cue — for pool
  7. pop — soda
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. wax — to grow
  10. bass — low music
  11. bass — the fish
  12. field — farmland
  13. field — a subject
  14. field — for sport
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. wind — moving air
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. pop — music
  19. cue — a signal
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. pop — to visit
  24. wound — an injury

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