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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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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: deal · tear · wax · calf · pitcher · swing · cell · sharp

  1. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. swing — to play on
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. sharp — clever
  6. tear — from crying
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. tear — to rip
  9. cell — in biology
  10. swing — in golf
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. wax — to grow
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. cell — a phone
  17. tear — from crying
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. deal — to handle
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. swing — music
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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