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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 giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. spring — the season
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. snap — to click
  5. spring — a coil
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. perch — the fish
  9. track — a path
  10. spring — of water
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. content — the amount
  14. track — a song
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. track — to keep track
  18. content — happy
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. wax — to grow
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. calf — of the leg

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