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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.

Make a worksheet

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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. fine — all right
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. march — the month
  5. degree — from a university
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. degree — temperature
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. rule — government
  11. game — wild animals
  12. march — music
  13. rule — a law
  14. fine — high quality
  15. wax — to grow
  16. degree — an amount
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. march — the month

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