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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.

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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: saw · calf · bowl · chest · wax · racket · tear · perch

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  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. racket — for tennis
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. wax — to grow
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. chest — a box
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. perch — the fish
  12. tear — from crying
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. saw — the tool
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tear — to rip
  20. saw — the tool
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. chest — of your body
  23. perch — for a bird
  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