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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. vault — a safe
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. pitch — completely
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. lean — to bend
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. lean — thin
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. degree — an amount
  17. deal — to handle
  18. wax — to grow
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. degree — temperature
  22. degree — from a university
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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