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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
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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: cell · bowl · wax · capital · clip · lie · ball · calf

  1. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. cell — a phone
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. lie — to recline
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. clip — for paper
  11. capital — money
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. cell — in biology
  17. capital — a city
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. clip — to cut
  20. ball — a great time
  21. clip — a video
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. ball — a dance
  24. wax — to grow

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