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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 120 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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. branch — a division
  4. bark — to shout
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. kick — in football
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. court — of law
  9. sharp — clever
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. court — of a king
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. court — for sport
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. mine — for digging
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. wax — to grow
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. branch — of a bank

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