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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. bear — the animal
  3. press — newspapers
  4. tear — to rip
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. press — to push
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. wax — to grow
  9. bear — the animal
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. wake — a trail
  13. tear — from crying
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. degree — from a university
  17. lie — to recline
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. tear — from crying
  20. degree — temperature
  21. lean — to bend
  22. press — a publisher
  23. lean — thin
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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