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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. spell — magic
  6. ground — a position
  7. ground — crushed
  8. bat — the animal
  9. object — an aim
  10. pop — to visit
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. pop — soda
  14. bark — to shout
  15. spell — a short time
  16. wax — to grow
  17. object — to protest
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. spell — letters
  21. ground — the earth
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. object — a thing
  24. bat — for baseball

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