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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 116 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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. bass — the fish
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. bass — low music
  5. degree — an amount
  6. perch — the fish
  7. degree — from a university
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. cell — in biology
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. ball — a dance
  14. cell — a phone
  15. kick — in football
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. degree — temperature
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. wax — to grow
  21. stem — to come from
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. ball — a great time
  24. wax — for sculpting

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