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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. content — happy
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. mine — for digging
  10. fine — all right
  11. wax — to grow
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. pass — a permit
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. fine — high quality
  21. key — for a lock
  22. key — the most important part
  23. key — in music
  24. mine — an explosive

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