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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 protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. court — of law
  4. bat — the animal
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. key — the most important part
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. court — for sport
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. bulb — for light
  11. pitch — completely
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. wax — to grow
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. branch — a division
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. court — of a king
  19. key — in music
  20. bulb — for light
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. key — for a lock
  24. calf — a young animal

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