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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. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. prune — to trim
  3. suit — to fit
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. degree — temperature
  6. fall — the season
  7. suit — in cards
  8. fall — to drop
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. row — to paddle
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. wax — to grow
  16. prune — to trim
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. row — a line
  19. degree — from a university
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. degree — an amount
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. fall — to drop

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