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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. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. wax — to grow
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. mark — a trace
  6. swing — in golf
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. scale — size or range
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. scale — in music
  12. capital — a city
  13. bear — the animal
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. mark — a grade
  17. capital — money
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. bear — the animal
  22. swing — music
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. swing — to play on

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