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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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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: bay · tear · degree · bear · wave · wound · wax · key

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. wax — to grow
  6. degree — temperature
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. key — for a lock
  9. degree — from a university
  10. tear — from crying
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. key — the most important part
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. wound — an injury
  17. bear — the animal
  18. wound — an injury
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. degree — an amount
  21. tear — to rip
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. key — in music
  24. bear — the animal

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