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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. spring — a coil
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. bear — the animal
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. wax — to grow
  7. field — for sport
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. row — a line
  10. spring — of water
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. tear — from crying
  13. field — farmland
  14. field — a subject
  15. row — to paddle
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. tear — to rip
  21. bear — the animal
  22. spring — the season
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. tear — from crying

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