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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 120 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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: patient · wax · rash · chest · lie · firm · bear · degree

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. degree — from a university
  3. bear — the animal
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. degree — an amount
  6. chest — of your body
  7. firm — decided
  8. degree — temperature
  9. lie — to recline
  10. chest — of your body
  11. firm — a company
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. bear — the animal
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. rash — hasty
  17. rash — a series
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. firm — steady
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. chest — a box

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