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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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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: pound · calf · pass · tear · bat · pit · wax · kid

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. pit — in a race
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. bat — the animal
  8. pass — a permit
  9. pit — a hole
  10. pound — a weight
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. kid — child
  15. kid — to tease
  16. tear — from crying
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. wax — to grow
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. tear — to rip
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. tear — from crying

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