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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. degree — an amount
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. file — a line of people
  6. file — a document
  7. degree — from a university
  8. track — to keep track
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. track — a song
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. track — a path
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. wax — to grow
  17. degree — temperature
  18. file — a tool

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