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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 124 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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. present — a gift
  3. present — there
  4. spring — a coil
  5. charge — electricity
  6. scale — size or range
  7. present — the time now
  8. wax — to grow
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. capital — money
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. spring — of water
  14. board — a committee
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. charge — in control
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. board — to get on
  19. charge — a price
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. capital — a city
  22. scale — in music
  23. spring — the season
  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