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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 giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. deal — to handle
  3. stem — to come from
  4. rush — hurry
  5. hand — help
  6. hand — in cards
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. mate — to breed
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. mate — a partner
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. rest — what's left
  14. mate — a friend
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. wax — to grow
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. rest — a break

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