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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. board — a committee
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. degree — from a university
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. degree — temperature
  7. wax — to grow
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. key — the most important part
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. pit — a hole
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. cell — in biology
  14. key — in music
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. cell — a phone
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. degree — an amount
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. pit — in a race
  22. board — to get on
  23. key — for a lock
  24. straw — dry grass

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