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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. degree — from a university
  3. degree — an amount
  4. rule — government
  5. bank — for money
  6. wax — to grow
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. sharp — clever
  13. bore — to drill
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. degree — temperature
  18. bank — of a river
  19. bank — for money
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. jam — a tight spot
  24. rule — a law

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