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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. march — the month
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. capital — a city
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. wax — to grow
  9. row — to paddle
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. cue — for pool
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. cue — a signal
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. march — the month
  17. capital — money
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. row — a line
  24. march — music

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