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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: lean · calf · wind · degree · clip · bound · court · wax

  1. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. clip — to cut
  3. degree — an amount
  4. lean — to bend
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. court — of law
  10. degree — from a university
  11. wind — moving air
  12. clip — for paper
  13. bound — tied together
  14. degree — temperature
  15. court — of a king
  16. wax — to grow
  17. bound — certain
  18. lean — thin
  19. wind — moving air
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. court — for sport
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. bound — obliged
  24. clip — a video

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