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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. wax — to grow
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. sharp — clever
  10. key — the most important part
  11. key — for a lock
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. spring — a coil
  16. kick — in football
  17. bore — to tire
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. branch — a division
  20. spring — the season
  21. key — in music
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. bore — to drill

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