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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. degree — from a university
  3. content — the amount
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. degree — temperature
  7. cell — a phone
  8. content — happy
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. degree — an amount
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. wax — to grow
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. tube — a container
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. saw — the tool
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. tube — the underground
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. branch — a division
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. saw — the tool
  24. cell — in biology

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