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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. degree — from a university
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. clip — to cut
  5. degree — an amount
  6. roll — a list
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. clip — a video
  12. clip — for paper
  13. bore — to tire
  14. mate — a friend
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. wax — to grow
  17. degree — temperature
  18. mate — to breed
  19. mate — a partner
  20. bore — to drill
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. roll — a cake
  23. safe — out of danger
  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