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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 124 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. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a signal
  2. bear — the animal
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. rest — a break
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. hand — in cards
  12. rest — what's left
  13. wax — to grow
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. hand — help
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. bear — the animal
  18. rest — what's left
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. cue — a hint
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. cue — for pool
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  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