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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 hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. tear — from crying
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. wax — to grow
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. wind — moving air
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. dip — to sink
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. tear — from crying
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. tear — to rip
  24. bat — the animal

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