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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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. object — an aim
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. squash — to crush
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. mine — for digging
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. march — music
  14. object — to protest
  15. march — the month
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. squash — the sport
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. wax — to grow
  22. object — a thing
  23. dip — to sink
  24. march — the month

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