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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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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: club · chest · wax · calf · squash · face · net · kid

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. squash — the sport
  5. chest — a box
  6. chest — of your body
  7. club — a group
  8. squash — to crush
  9. face — to point toward
  10. wax — to grow
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. face — to confront
  14. club — for golf
  15. net — after costs
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. kid — child
  18. club — for dancing
  19. net — for catching
  20. kid — to tease
  21. net — in sport
  22. face — part of the head
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. calf — a young animal

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