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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. wax — to grow
  4. lean — thin
  5. suit — clothes
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. march — the month
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. march — music
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. key — for a lock
  12. key — the most important part
  13. drill — army training
  14. degree — from a university
  15. suit — to fit
  16. drill — the tool
  17. suit — in cards
  18. drill — a practice
  19. key — in music
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. lean — to bend
  22. degree — an amount
  23. degree — temperature
  24. march — the month

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