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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. degree — an amount
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. degree — temperature
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. last — final
  9. squash — the sport
  10. last — to go on
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. last — finally
  13. degree — from a university
  14. squash — to crush
  15. bound — tied together
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. saw — the tool
  18. bound — obliged
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. saw — the tool
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. bound — certain
  23. wax — to grow
  24. foot — part of the body

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