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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.

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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. cue — for pool
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. wax — to grow
  5. lean — to bend
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. degree — an amount
  8. prune — to trim
  9. cap — a hat
  10. prune — to trim
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. cue — a hint
  14. mate — a friend
  15. degree — temperature
  16. lean — thin
  17. mate — to breed
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. mate — a partner
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. cue — a signal
  23. cap — a lid
  24. cap — of ice

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