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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. kick — in football
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. spell — a short time
  5. bark — to shout
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. toast — bread
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. ground — a position
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. wax — to grow
  20. spell — magic
  21. spell — letters
  22. ground — crushed
  23. ground — the earth
  24. vault — a safe

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