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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 116 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 · calf · cell · rest · fall · clip · dip · face

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. face — part of the head
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. face — to confront
  7. dip — to sink
  8. cell — in biology
  9. rest — what's left
  10. rest — what's left
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. face — to point toward
  13. rest — a break
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. fall — to drop
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. fall — the season
  18. clip — a video
  19. clip — for paper
  20. cell — a phone
  21. wax — to grow
  22. clip — to cut
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. fall — to drop

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