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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 120 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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. degree — temperature
  4. cell — in biology
  5. spell — a short time
  6. spring — of water
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. cell — a phone
  9. dip — to sink
  10. spring — the season
  11. degree — an amount
  12. fall — the season
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. fall — to drop
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. spring — a coil
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. fall — to drop
  20. spell — letters
  21. wax — to grow
  22. degree — from a university
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. spell — magic

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