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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. wind — moving air
  3. pop — to visit
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. mate — to breed
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. mate — a friend
  9. wax — to grow
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. wind — moving air
  12. can — a tin
  13. can — a tin
  14. pop — music
  15. mate — a partner
  16. can — to be able to
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. wound — an injury
  20. pop — soda
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. calf — a young 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