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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. wax — to grow
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. board — a committee
  7. board — to get on
  8. content — happy
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. season — in sport
  12. cold — not warm
  13. mate — a friend
  14. mate — to breed
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. content — the amount
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. season — of the year
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. mate — a partner

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