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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 116 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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. wax — to grow
  3. degree — temperature
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. press — to push
  6. last — finally
  7. degree — an amount
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. spell — letters
  10. last — to go on
  11. spell — a short time
  12. degree — from a university
  13. press — newspapers
  14. pass — a permit
  15. spell — magic
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. press — a publisher
  18. pass — to spend time

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