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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. wax — to grow
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. squash — the sport
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. game — wild animals
  10. game — a match
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. squash — to crush
  14. stem — to come from
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. field — a subject
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. field — for sport
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. field — farmland
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. vault — a safe

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