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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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: calf · current · land · fork · wax · dip · cold · spring

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. spring — a coil
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. fork — in a road
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. wax — to grow
  8. cold — an illness
  9. spring — of water
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. spring — the season
  13. current — electric
  14. land — to come down
  15. current — of water
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. current — happening now
  18. land — ground
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. dip — to sink
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. land — a country
  24. fork — a garden tool

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