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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 120 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: last · wax · bore · squash · pitch · game · calf · wind

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. last — finally
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. wind — moving air
  6. wind — moving air
  7. last — to go on
  8. wax — to grow
  9. bore — to tire
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. squash — the sport
  13. squash — to crush
  14. bore — to drill
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. last — final
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. game — wild animals
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. pitch — completely
  23. game — a match
  24. wind — to turn a key

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