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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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. wound — an injury
  3. mate — to breed
  4. game — a match
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. mate — a friend
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. wax — to grow
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. wound — an injury
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. mate — a partner
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. game — wild animals
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. date — 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