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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: bear · plane · wax · board · degree · kick · content · tear

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. tear — from crying
  3. degree — from a university
  4. kick — in football
  5. tear — to rip
  6. wax — to grow
  7. degree — an amount
  8. content — the amount
  9. degree — temperature
  10. board — a committee
  11. bear — the animal
  12. plane — a tool
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. content — happy
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. board — to get on
  20. bear — the animal
  21. tear — from crying
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. plane — in geometry

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