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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 120 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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. file — a tool
  5. key — the most important part
  6. key — in music
  7. wax — to grow
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. key — for a lock
  10. degree — from a university
  11. degree — an amount
  12. perch — the fish
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. degree — temperature
  16. clip — to cut
  17. clip — a video
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. clip — for paper
  21. file — a line of people
  22. rock — music
  23. rock — a stone
  24. wound — an injury

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