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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 116 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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. face — to point toward
  3. wax — to grow
  4. degree — from a university
  5. bound — certain
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. face — part of the head
  9. degree — an amount
  10. board — to get on
  11. face — to confront
  12. board — a committee
  13. lie — to recline
  14. degree — temperature
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — to rip
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. hand — help
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. hand — in cards
  21. bound — tied together
  22. tear — from crying
  23. bound — obliged
  24. board — a flat piece

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