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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 120 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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. 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. season — in sport
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. degree — from a university
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. wake — a trail
  7. face — part of the head
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. clip — for paper
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. degree — an amount
  14. face — to point toward
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. clip — to cut
  17. wax — to grow
  18. clip — a video
  19. face — to confront
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. perch — the fish
  22. season — of the year
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. 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