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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. fork — in a road
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. wound — an injury
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. last — finally
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. last — final
  13. last — to go on
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. cold — an illness
  17. bore — to tire
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. bore — to drill
  20. wax — to grow
  21. wound — an injury
  22. cold — not warm
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. wax — in the ear

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