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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wax · tear · ground · calf · deal · wind

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. deal — to handle
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. ground — a position
  5. wind — moving air
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. tear — to rip
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. ground — the earth
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. tear — from crying
  17. wax — to grow
  18. ground — crushed

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