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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. wax — to grow
  3. mark — a trace
  4. bore — to tire
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. vault — a safe
  8. face — part of the head
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. bore — to drill
  11. face — to point toward
  12. degree — temperature
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. snap — to click
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. degree — an amount
  18. mark — a grade
  19. lean — thin
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. lean — to bend
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. face — to confront

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