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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. tear — to rip
  5. stem — to come from
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. bound — tied together
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. tear — from crying
  13. snap — to click
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. bound — certain
  16. kick — in football
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. tear — from crying
  21. wax — to grow
  22. bore — to drill
  23. bore — to tire
  24. bound — obliged

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