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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 116 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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. bank — of a river
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. degree — from a university
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. bank — for money
  7. degree — an amount
  8. pop — music
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. degree — temperature
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. season — in sport
  13. file — a document
  14. file — a line of people
  15. wax — to grow
  16. bank — for money
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. pop — to visit
  19. season — of the year
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. file — a tool
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. pop — soda
  24. safe — out of danger

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