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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.

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: bore · perch · pop · patient · rest · wax · degree · face

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. degree — an amount
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. bore — to tire
  6. rest — what's left
  7. face — to point toward
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. degree — temperature
  10. bore — to drill
  11. rest — what's left
  12. rest — a break
  13. face — to confront
  14. pop — soda
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. perch — the fish
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. wax — to grow
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. degree — from a university
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. face — part of the head
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. pop — music

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