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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. kick — in football
  4. face — to point toward
  5. wind — moving air
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. wax — to grow
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. band — a music group
  11. rash — a series
  12. band — a ring
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. face — part of the head
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. rash — hasty
  20. face — to confront
  21. wound — an injury
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wound — an injury
  24. kick — with a leg

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