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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 moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. degree — from a university
  5. face — to confront
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. degree — an amount
  11. face — to point toward
  12. drill — the tool
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. degree — temperature
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. face — part of the head
  18. bat — the animal
  19. drill — a practice
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. vault — a safe
  23. drill — army training
  24. bat — for baseball

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