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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. race — humankind
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. wax — to grow
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. chair — a leader
  8. bound — certain
  9. degree — from a university
  10. bound — tied together
  11. race — a contest
  12. bound — obliged
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. degree — an amount
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. degree — temperature
  18. stem — to come from
  19. band — a ring
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. race — the arms race
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. band — a music group

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