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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. capital — money
  4. rule — government
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. bear — the animal
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. mate — a partner
  10. rule — a law
  11. mate — to breed
  12. degree — from a university
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. capital — a city
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. degree — temperature
  18. wax — to grow
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. mate — a friend
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. degree — an amount
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. bear — the animal

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