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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. squash — to crush
  7. wax — to grow
  8. degree — from a university
  9. saw — the tool
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. squash — the sport
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. degree — an amount
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bear — the animal
  16. saw — the tool
  17. kick — in football
  18. degree — temperature

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