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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. face — part of the head
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. cold — not warm
  5. bore — to tire
  6. face — to confront
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. wax — to grow
  9. drill — the tool
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. face — to point toward
  12. cold — an illness
  13. drill — army training
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. degree — an amount
  16. vault — a safe
  17. degree — temperature
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. degree — from a university
  20. bore — to drill
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. drill — a practice

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