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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. degree — temperature
  4. degree — from a university
  5. lean — to bend
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. court — for sport
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wound — an injury
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. wax — to grow
  15. bear — the animal
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. cell — in biology
  18. cell — a phone
  19. court — of a king
  20. degree — an amount
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. lean — thin
  24. court — of 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