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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. mate — to breed
  3. key — the most important part
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. key — for a lock
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. wax — to grow
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. key — in music
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. spring — the season
  12. bear — the animal
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. mate — a partner
  15. bear — the animal
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. degree — an amount
  18. mate — a friend
  19. spring — of water
  20. degree — temperature
  21. degree — from a university
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. spring — a coil

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