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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: game · prune · mate · fall · calf · capital · wax · stand

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. game — wild animals
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. wax — to grow
  6. fall — to drop
  7. fall — to drop
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. stand — to bear
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. capital — a city
  13. mate — a partner
  14. fall — the season
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. prune — to trim
  17. mate — a friend
  18. prune — to trim
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. mate — to breed
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. capital — money
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. wax — in the ear

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