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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: last · court · season · key · degree · calf · wax · chest

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. last — final
  4. wax — to grow
  5. chest — a box
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. degree — an amount
  8. key — the most important part
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. key — in music
  11. court — of law
  12. court — of a king
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. last — finally
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. degree — temperature
  17. court — for sport
  18. season — in sport
  19. chest — of your body
  20. chest — of your body
  21. season — of the year
  22. key — for a lock
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. degree — from a university

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