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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.

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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: chair · spring · pit · perch · calf · wake · wax · stick

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. pit — in a race
  5. spring — of water
  6. spring — the season
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. chair — a leader
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. wake — a trail
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. wax — to grow
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. pit — a hole
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. spring — a coil
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. perch — the fish

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