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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. degree — an amount
  3. lean — to bend
  4. wax — to grow
  5. swing — to play on
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. wound — an injury
  8. swing — in golf
  9. lean — thin
  10. bound — obliged
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. swing — music
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. degree — temperature
  16. roll — a list
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. bound — certain
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. roll — a cake
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. wound — an injury
  23. degree — from a university
  24. calf — a young animal

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