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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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. wax — to grow
  4. prune — to trim
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. plane — a tool
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. kid — to tease
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. capital — a city
  14. pitch — completely
  15. capital — money
  16. kid — child
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. prune — to trim
  19. lean — to bend
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. lean — thin
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. prune — the fruit

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