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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. squash — the sport
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. chest — of your body
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. mark — a trace
  12. squash — to crush
  13. chest — a box
  14. rule — government
  15. chest — of your body
  16. dip — to sink
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. mark — a grade
  24. rule — a law

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