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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. track — a path
  5. track — a song
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. cell — a phone
  8. rule — government
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. wax — to grow
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. track — to keep track
  15. mine — for digging
  16. cell — in biology
  17. ball — a great time
  18. rule — a law
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. chest — of your body
  22. chest — a box
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. chest — of your body

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