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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. wax — to grow
  3. spell — letters
  4. rock — music
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. spell — a short time
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. content — happy
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. bass — low music
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. content — the amount
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. bat — the animal
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. rock — a stone
  24. bass — the fish

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