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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 · clip · dip · kick · patient · calf · cap · fork

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. clip — a video
  4. clip — to cut
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. clip — for paper
  9. wax — to grow
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. cap — of ice
  17. cap — a hat
  18. dip — to sink
  19. kick — in football
  20. cap — a lid
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. fork — in a road
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. patient — a sick person

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